


The Love Has Died

by Lady_Peace



Series: RWBY Modern AU [3]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Angst, Anti-Faunus Racism (RWBY), Dysfunctional Family, F/F, F/M, Female Ozpin, Flirting, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Mutual Pining, Protests, Slow Burn, Slow To Update, Swearing, Transgender Oscar Pine, Transgender Ozpin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-11-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:15:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 25,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24039502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Peace/pseuds/Lady_Peace
Summary: Part 3 in the RWBY Modern AU.Two years later, Salem is losing everything. She’s sick and doesn’t know how much time she has left, Cinder left her, Hazel and Arthur are only ever there when it is required, and Tyrian is holding onto false hope that she actually cares about them.Ozpin doesn’t realize how much time a certain dusty, old crow is trying to spend with her.RWBY is attempting to bond (and they put their noses in places they don’t belong).
Relationships: Ozpin/Qrow Branwen, past Salem/Ozpin
Series: RWBY Modern AU [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1698397
Comments: 29
Kudos: 45





	1. Good Morning

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Promises of an Unknown Coast](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11163627) by [TigerMoon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TigerMoon/pseuds/TigerMoon). 



> Welcome to “The Love Has Died!”  
> Hope you’ll enjoy it! 💕
> 
> Story inspired by Tigermoon’s “Promises of an Unknown Coast.” Do read it, their writing is incredible!

**2 and a Half Years Later**

___

Qrow had been given a nickname at birth.

 _Bad luck charm_.

His mother was young when she had him and Raven. Their father left before they were even conceived.

Their mother claimed that bad and unfortunate things always occurred when Qrow was around.

If Qrow was there, a glass would fall and break, or the microwave would refuse to work, or the bus would be late. His mother would always scream and yell at him for it.

Raven caught on to her habits. She began to call him by the same cruel name.

Once, when he was younger, their mother was drunk early in the morning and she stopped by Raven and Qrow's shared room. He was on his knees on the dirty floor, his elbows on his bed, and his hands clasped together.

"What are you doing?" she slurred the question. She took another sip of the cold beer in her hands.

"Praying," Qrow simply answered.

His mother scoffed. She repeated the word in a mock, " _Praying_."

Qrow ignored her. He shut his eyes and continued to pray.

"What are you praying for?"

"For God to forgive us," Qrow replied.

His mother laughed again.

Raven lifted her head from her book. She sat up in her bed and looked at Qrow. She then looked at her mother.

Raven spat, "There is no such thing as God. Even if there was, he won't listen to any of your silly praying, Bad Luck Charm."

Qrow looked up at his sister. The nickname always stung, and insulting his beliefs was only adding salt to the wound.

His mother couldn't seem to keep her mouth shut ever. She'd pick at every little detail, and if she didn't particularly like you, she'd make sure to be extra aggressive. Raven followed her lead.

However, unlike Qrow's sister and mother, Ozpin despised the nickname.

Whenever he referred to himself as a bad luck charm, she would shush him or give him a look that threatened to shut him up herself.

Qrow liked visiting Ozpin— of course, Glynda was bothered by it because he would distract her from her headmaster duties.

In fact, he was visiting her right now.

"Hello, Qrow," Ozpin greeted when he arrived. She glanced up at the man from her seat at her large desk. "Please don't tell me you're drunk."

Qrow had a hand on the side of his head. His headache had been stinging specifically on that side of his head.

"No," he claimed, "I'm not drunk. I'm hungover. There's a difference." He sat down in one of the seats for guests.

Ozpin placed a cup of tea in front of him. "It's Monday, Qrow."

Qrow slurred, "Yep. Yes, it is."

"A school day. It is a school day."

"Oh."

Ozpin took her eyes off her work and looked up at him. She shook her head at the man and continued to do her work.

A blonde woman entered the office from the elevator. She paused when she saw Qrow sitting in one of the seats.

"Is he drunk?" Glynda asked.

"No, _hungover_ ," Qrow said defensively.

"Never mind," she muttered. She stood up straight when she got closer to Ozpin's desk. She peered outside. "The demons have awoken."

The students were indeed gathering outside. Most of them appeared tired while the morning people ran laps or were cheerfully rambling to their exhausted teammates.

Ozpin warned, "Glynda."

"What?" she asked. She pointed at Qrow. "After _that thing_ , I can't take any chances. He probably taught his nieces all his pranks."

"That was seventeen years ago, Glynda."

"Yeah, Ozzy's right." Qrow grinned up at Glynda as she gave him a death stare. "You really need to let those pranks go."

Qrow was arguably the best prankster in Beacon when he was a student. He was the best for four years until he graduated. He was specifically the greatest prankster because he almost always got away with his pranks.

"You threw three buckets of water on me one day right before a meeting. I will never let that go," Glynda declared.

"That was seventeen years ago," Qrow reminded her. The smirk plastered on his face remained smug.

"Speaking of meetings, I have one I need to attend or the council will threaten to get me fired," Ozpin announced, "as if they don't do that every meeting."

Glynda asked, "Should I go with you?"

"No, no need. You two can stay here." The white-haired woman looked directly at Qrow. She told them, "Behave. That means you Qrow. Don't aggravate Glynda into trying to kill you."

Qrow scoffed and returned to sipping his tea.

Glynda said, "Don't worry. If I want to kill him, I won't try. I'll just do it instead."

Ozpin glared at her with a raised brow. She mouthed the words, " _Don't kill him_."

She entered the elevator and left to go to her boring meeting.

Qrow shifted towards Glynda.

"Sooo—"

Glynda sighed loudly and let her head fall back.

Qrow continued. "Is Oz single?"

The blonde teacher's head snapped towards him, and Qrow swore the woman just got whiplash.

"Excuse me?"

"Is she? Does she have any crazy ex-boyfriends I should know about too?" Qrow inquired, placing his tea down and looking up at the woman. He wore a face of curiosity and playfulness.

"No," Glynda answered. She turned around so Qrow wouldn't see the panic in her face. A drop of sweat rolled down her forehead. "No ex-boyfriends."

"Hmm..." he murmured. "Ex-girlfriends?"

"Qrow Branwen," Glynda warned.

"What? She's a pretty lady. There's no way she hasn't dated."

This time Glynda turned back around and walked towards the man at a quick pace. Her loud heels slammed against the floor. She stood in front of him with annoyance and fury in the eyes behind her glasses.

"That's none of your concern."

"Really? She hasn't dated before?" Qrow babbled with the questions, ignoring the woman in front of him completely. "When I was still a student here, in year one, I heard that Oz was seeing someone. Then the next year, she seemed miserable. Did she have a—"

"Qrow Branwen," Glynda repeated his name, crossing her arms over her chest. "Ozpin has not dated and most likely never will. End of discussion."

She marched towards the elevator. Qrow sat in one of the seats still, stunned.

___

Taiyang rushed to the kitchen. Before he could get to the toaster, the almost entirely black bread popped out of it.

He groaned loudly as Yang and Ruby walked down the steps.

"Man, I love burnt toast," Yang mocked, grabbing a mug and pouring coffee into it. She chuckled as Tai gave her a glare.

Ruby turned on her scroll to check the date. She had lost track of time during the weekend. Kids would visit their families when they were free instead of sleeping all weekend in the dorms.

Ruby gasped and suddenly her exhaustion was replaced with excitement.

"It's Monday!" she exclaimed right next to Yang's ear. Yang winced, but she was too tired to lecture her little sister.

She sipped her coffee as Ruby's face changed into a variety of different emotions. Glee, realization, and then despair.

"Oh, shit. It's Monday," she mumbled under her breath. Yang patted her on the head like how she did with Zwei.

Tai said, "Calm down. It's not that bad." He was pouring milk into three bowls filled with cereal. Zwei barked at him for food.

As Tai filled Zwei's own personal bowl with dog food, the girls ate their cereal.

"I don't have any friends at Beacon and I'm the youngest!" Ruby complained.

"Um," Yang attempted to speak but couldn't with Ruby talking over her. "Rubes, team RWBY exists."

"I’m pretty sure I've never heard Blake say more than ten words in a day, and Weiss doesn't even like me."

"You're exaggerating! They totally like—"

Ruby stopped Yang from finishing her sentence by raising her brow at her. She looked back at her father who had just finished feeding Zwei.

Weiss wasn't all too fond of Ruby, mainly because she was a thirteen-year-old girl when they first met. Blake was really only there to read books and say one word when someone tried to speak with her.

The group only really hung out when they all had nowhere else to be.

Yang hung out with team CFVY a lot— which really pissed off Ruby because CFVY was considered one of the most badass groups in the school. She could really only get herself to speak to Velvet, who was the nicest and most approachable in the team, while Coco and Yang bonded over being cool and semi-popular.

Blake Belladonna spent her time at the library or in the dorm, or with her friend, Sun. She was distant, but she was a bit of a nerd. If she had the opportunity to one-up a member of team CRDL in class, she would and she’d exchange a smug grin with Yang.

Weiss Schnee— a typical rich girl born in Atlas from a well-known racist family dynasty. However, she studied and cared about grades. She could be rude at times and often made jabs at Ruby’s childish behavior. Ruby wanted to believe she was more than her last name.

They were almost mid-school year and the group barely bonded. Though, this year Ruby wanted to make RWBY a true team.

___

"You made cookies?" Emerald asked while staring at the cookies Tyrian was offering her. "You made cookies for us?"

"Yes!" Tyrian answered, nodding his head rapidly. Arthur stood next to him.

Mercury hesitated to take a cookie, but he eventually chose one and bit into it. He soon hummed with joy at the taste.

He asked while stuffing the rest of the cookie in his mouth, "Damn, this is pretty good. What's in this?"

"Butter, flour, eggs, milk, poison, cocaine—"

"Fucking Christ," Cinder groaned.

Roman let out a small chuckle. Neo smiled at Cinder's annoyance.

"I swear if your boyfriend actually just fed me poison and cocaine—" Mercury began to threaten at Arthur.

Arthur shushed him by putting his hand in the nineteen-year-old boy's face. "Tyrian is the type of person who is told to bring coke to a party and brings cocaine instead of the soda. What do you expect?"

"That's exactly what I'm fuckin' worried about," Mercury said, pointing a finger at his other uncle.

Salem interjected, "Zip it. It's a school day. You don't want to be late. Now go."

She tried waving them off which caused some of them to back up but not leave.

"You're not coming with us?" Emerald asked.

"No, no. Heaven's no."

Salem turned around and went to retreat back inside her home which she often referred to as her own little castle.

"Grandma Salem doesn't like Beacon all that much," Roman whispered to the two students.

"Don't call me Grandma!" Salem yelled back. "I'm only four years older than you, Roman. Watch your tongue or I'll cut it off for you!"

Roman raised his hands in surrender. That woman scared the living shit out of him.

Cinder had cut ties with Salem along with Arthur and Hazel. Tyrian, on the other hand, was trying to help Salem as much as possible.

Hazel and Watts rarely helped out, but when they did, Tyrian smiled. Salem often screamed and snapped at the Faunus, sometimes at the other two men as well which only reminded them why they left in the first place.

Cinder spent more time in the other part of the family. Roman was glad that she and Neo were bonding and could be labeled best friends.

Emerald and Mercury still visited their dear ‘Grandmother’, but they didn’t understand why everyone else was acting differently. Cinder refused to answer their questions.

___

“Guys!” Ruby screeched at the top of her lungs.

Weiss and Blake had stayed in the dorms over the weekend. The white-haired girl looked up at Ruby and went back to her studies. Blake didn’t even bother taking her eyes off her book.

Ruby looked back and forth at her two teammates. She looked at Yang for guidance, but the blonde just shrugged.

“Hey! Guys!” Ruby yelled again.

Weiss groaned. “ _Whaaat_?”

“Team bonding!” the fifth-teen year old said, flailing her arms in the air.

“What?” Weiss asked again.

Blake finally looked up from her book and tilted her head in curiosity.

“There’s gonna be a dance soon and I think we should plan it—”

“CFVY is planning that,” Yang cut her off.

Ruby grabbed a pillow and chucked it at her sister. “Anyway, like I was saying, there’s going to be a dance that team CFVY can no longer plan because of a test coming up. So, I convinced Auntie Ozzy—”

Weiss corrected, “Professor Ozpin.”

“— to let us plan the event. It will be fun, and we can bond as a team!”

Ruby pointed finger-guns at both Blake and Weiss.

“Okay,” said Blake in a low voice. Due to her being anti-social, her answers and responses to Yang and Ruby sounded more like questions. They were too hyper for her.

Weiss replied, “Sure. I guess that can be considered fun.”

Both went back to their studies and reading. Ruby jumped up and down, silencing her excitement by covering her mouth.

“Yes!” she giggled quietly.


	2. Love Dances Around You Like a Cruel Joke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Qrow tries to ask Oz on a date, but the moment is interrupted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ;) enjoy  
> (I came up with that strange title and I kinda like it and think it is weird at the same time but whatever)

The rest of the week for team RWBY was spent decorating and planning for the dance.

Weiss and Yang were arguing about what dresses to wear, what types of drinks should there be, and all sorts of other details about the dance. 

Yang wanted to wear a white dress. Weiss was upset about that because the color white was rightfully her color. Yang said that the color would make her stand out to the boys (even though she's recently been having a crisis about her sexuality).

JNPR offered to help the girls.

Blake and Ren watched in silence as Pyrrha tried to talk to an oblivious Jaune. Ruby and Nora were screeching as loud as they could as an attempt to get Yang and Weiss to stop fighting. That only made the two girls yell louder and throw quite interesting insults at each other.

So basically; it was going great.

Glynda, Oobleck, Port, and Peach all stood in the doorway.

"Should we put a stop to this? I feel like we should put a stop to this. We've gotten about five noise complaints from this," Oobleck rambled.

"I still stand by my opinion that it was a bad idea to let Ozpin's nieces plan this event," added Glynda.

"The professor is a smart woman," Peach said. "I'm sure this was a reasonable choice on her part."

"I would like to think that you are right," a female voice said.

All the teachers turned around to see Ozpin and Oscar. There was an early dismissal at Signal, so Oscar was spending the rest of the day with his mother at Beacon.

"Oscar!" yelled Ruby once she spotted the short boy.

Yang swiveled around and excitement replaced her previously annoyed facial expression.

Both sisters approached their twelve-year-old cousin and dragged him into the large room.

"Hey! This conversation isn't over!" Weiss shrieked as Yang and Ruby caught up with Oscar.

Doctor Oobleck, Professor Port, and Professor Peach all retreated back to their classrooms. Goodwitch stayed with Oz.

Qrow, who had been repeatedly visiting the school over the week, had arrived and stood with the two women.

"Hi," Qrow said to Ozpin, completely ignoring Professor Goodwitch's existence. He looked down at the headmaster and grinned at her.

Ozpin wore a blank expression while watching her students, however, when Qrow started talking, the corners of her lips formed a faint smile. She responded, "Hello."

Glynda wanted to vomit at the sight.

___

In the Rainart’s Club, part of the Fall-Torchwick family sat in stools together.

“I just— I don’t understand how you can eat hot Cheetos this early in the fucking morning,” Mercury said while pointing at Tyrian, Cinder, and Emerald who were all indeed eating hot Cheetos.

“It’s the afternoon,” Hazel corrected.

The three had a habit of eating things that should probably kill them. Emerald wasn’t always like this, but she got closer to Cinder and picked up some of her habits and hobbies.

Tyrian, on the other hand— he just does whatever the hell he wants.

“Like, you just grab a bag and—” Mercury didn’t finish his sentence. He mimicked opening a bag and taking a Cheeto out of it and placing it in his mouth.

Emerald replied, chewing on her snack at the same time, “Stop complaining.”

“Dude, all I hear every day is—” Mercury cut himself off once more and began making excessively loud smacking sounds with his mouth.

He stopped and stared at the trio. “Just _please_ stop, holy shit.”

“Good job,” Arthur, who was standing behind Mercury, huffed. “Now they’re going to be twice as annoying.”

Tyrian smiled up at his boyfriend. Cinder and Emerald nodded, confirming Arthur’s theory.

“If you three get crumbs on my floor—” Hazel threatened, not finishing his sentence and letting his death stare do the rest.

“Yeah, yeah, big guy,” Cinder said, waving him off, “we won’t.”

Salem stood outside the bar.

Tyrian had invited her to the little gathering, but she couldn’t get herself to open the door and enter.

The group was laughing and poking fun at each other. They weren’t perfect. They weren’t the perfect family and they would never be.

That was okay.

They were in better places in their lives.

Cinder was bonding with her children and was getting along with her ex-husband’s girlfriend. If that second one wasn’t an accomplishment, then what was?

Mercury had been able to walk every day without issue for two years with his prosthetics.

Arthur was focusing on his new job and Tyrian more than he could before.

A vibration from Salem’s scrolled caught her attention. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the scroll.

A message from Leonardo Lionheart was on her screen.

_Are you coming?_

Salem typed a reply. _In a few minutes, Leo._

___

“Ozpin,” Glynda called out the woman’s name.

“Yes?” answered Ozpin in her innocent voice, turning away from Qrow.

Goodwitch pointed behind herself. Leonardo, the headmaster of Haven, was getting off an elevator and approaching the group. “Lionheart.”

Ozpin quietly gasped in surprise. She greeted, “Oh, Leo! I wasn’t expecting to see you until the Vytal festivals.”

Leo and Ozpin shook hands. The handshake was soft but firm.

“Yes, but that religion and mythology expert I told you about has agreed to teach a few lessons,” Leo announced, “however, since Vytal is being hosted by Vale again, I would like her to do it here, at Beacon with your permission.”

“Of course,” Ozpin agreed. “I would be more than happy.”

Lionheart continued, “She should be arriving in a few minutes. I’ll leave you to—” he paused and stared back at the mess that was JNPR and RWBY torturing Oscar with their strange conversations and questions— “whatever that is. We’ll go to your office when the expert arrives.”

Leo left and retreated back to the elevator. Ozpin spun around to look at the students.

“Ms. Valkyrie, please don’t murder my son,” she advised. She walked towards the children, so she could help and save Oscar from the teenagers.

Qrow and Glynda’s eyes followed the white-haired woman, watching her.

Glynda ripped her eyes off Ozpin and faced Qrow. “You make her happy.”

Qrow turned to the other professor with a puzzled look on his face. He asked, “What?”

Glynda repeated, “You make her happy.” She looked back at Ozpin. “She isn’t— she’s been through some things. She needs someone. She needs someone to help her through life. She has a son and a lot of work. She needs someone to help her balance those two things. She needs someone who will make her happy. _You_ make her happy.”

Qrow stared at Goodwitch. One of his brows was raised at the woman.

“She forgets to eat sometimes,” she stated. “She forgets what time it is while working late at school and doesn’t get to spend time with Oscar much. She forgets to sleep too, but sometimes she passes out in her office.”

“You think I remember any of those things either?” Qrow inquired. He placed his hands on his hips.

“No,” Glynda responded, “but you two can help each other. You can be her person, and she can be your person.”

“What are you saying, Glynda?”

“I’m saying that Ozpin is very much single.” She turned to Qrow who’s smile was widening. “You can ask her out. You should ask her out.”

Qrow grinned. His blood-red eyes trying to pierce through Glynda's soul, an attempt to figure her out.

When he realized there was nothing hiding behind her words, he relaxed.

___

“Hey, Oz!” Qrow shouted, practically running in order to catch up with her.

Ozpin looked up at the man. A small smile replaced her tired face. “Yes, Qrow?”

Qrow stared at her. He admired the emerald green turtleneck and the black peacoat she wore. The way her small, soft hand wrapped around the beautiful cane that had been passed down throughout her family. The way her silver hair flowed in the breeze when she turned around. Her hair rested against her back and shoulders.

Qrow wanted to kiss her right then and there.

But he couldn’t. _One step at a time_ , he thought.

“Qrow?” Oz quietly said his name.

Qrow snapped out of it and began to stammer while trying to form words.

He shut himself up, looking away for a moment in order to get himself together. He stood up straight and put back on his usual smug grin.

“So,” he murmured, a hand resting against the back of his hot neck, “I was wondering if you would like to go on a—”

“ _Ozpin_.”

Qrow paused. He glanced at the woman who had said the professor’s name.

She had white hair, red eyes, a black coat, though she wore a long black dress that couldn’t save her from the bitter cold. The woman and her frail bones would have frozen to death without that coat.

Qrow looked back at the headmaster. She didn’t turn around. Her amber-brown eyes were wide and her lips were slightly parted, occasionally opening her mouth fully in order to breathe.

Eventually, she turned around.

“ _Salem_ ,” she whispered, spite and sadness hidden in her voice. She held her cane protectively between them though the two women weren’t anywhere near each other’s personal space.

Lionheart stood behind Salem, watching the stand-off with fear and nervousness in his face.

Salem smiled, her eyes fixated on the woman in front of her. “It’s been too long, hasn’t it, _darling_?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> Comment as much as you please! I love reading them.


	3. Hello, Class

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ozpin and Glynda try to deal with their situation. Team RWBY sees Salem again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update :(

Ozpin's grip on her cane remained tight, it stayed in between the two women.

She put on a calm look but instead looked irritated. Qrow had never seen her like this.

"How long has it been since we last spoke again?" Salem asked. "Ah, right. Twenty years."

Qrow furrowed his brow. Before he could do anything, giggling and loud footsteps from three children filled the silent room.

Oscar, Ruby, and Yang entered, and they fell silent when they saw the adults.

Oscar approached his mother. He asked, "Hey, are we gonna go home?"

Ozpin took her eyes off Salem and looked down at her son. She leaned forward.

She whispered to the small boy, her eyes filled with softness and regret, "I'm sorry. I may need to stay late tonight... _again_."

"Of course you do," Oscar grumbled. His smile fell and formed into a frown.

Ozpin faced Lionheart. She said, "It's late, and I'm afraid I have other important tasks to attend to. Could we have this meeting at another time?"

Lionheart agreed, "Of course. Tomorrow?"

"That would be fine, Leo."

"Alright," he responded, "we'll see you then."

Salem and Leo turned towards the exit. Salem looked behind her shoulder, smirking at Ozpin one more time.

Ozpin turned to Qrow. "Could you bring Oscar home for me please?"

Qrow nodded.

Ozpin began to retreat to her office by going towards the elevator. Glynda marched loyally behind her.

Qrow grabbed Glynda's arm.

Her first instinct was to pull away from him. She glared up at him, her furious eyes demanding an explanation as to why he grabbed her.

"You said I should be her person," he stated. "Just tell me what's wrong, and I'll take care of Oz."

"No."

"But, you said—"

"It doesn't matter," Glynda snapped, her voice getting louder, "what I said."

She took a deep breath. She leaned in close to Qrow to make sure the children couldn't hear her.

She whispered, "This is a personal matter. Let me handle Ozpin."

She took off behind Ozpin.

Qrow sighed in defeat.

___

Ruby and Yang had returned to their dorms for the night, and now Qrow was bringing Oscar to the Pine household.

Oscar was staring out the window, an irritated look plastered all over his face.

While they were at a red light, Qrow glanced at the twelve-year-old.

"You okay, kiddo?" he asked.

Oscar sighed, then mumbled, "Yeah."

"Look," Qrow said, "your mom is doin' her best. She wants to spend time with you— she does. She's just... busy."

The boy scoffed loudly. "Then why did she adopt me if she was going to be so busy all the time?"

"I—" Qrow began, cutting himself off in order to form his words correctly. "Maybe— maybe she just needed something good in her life."

Oscar stared at Qrow, his previously annoyed eyes slowly became soft with realization and a hint of confusion. 

"Oh," he whispered under his breath.

"My mother— she wasn't exactly... there for me," Qrow announced to the child. "She was cruel, drunk, and high most of the time." Qrow reached for his flask but hesitated. He chose to leave it in his pocket.

"Oz isn't the greatest mom, but she's definitely a good one, pipsqueak." He told him, "Just love her before you lose her, kid."

Oscar gave a small nod. He continued looking out the window. He glimpsed at Qrow a few times, trying to figure out what he meant.

___ 

_Ozpin collapsed onto her light green couch in her living room._

_It had been a long day at work. Oz was exhausted. She shut her eyes, forgetting to take off her glasses, but she didn't care. She was fully clothed still, her heels weren't fully on anymore and were dangling, almost falling off her feet and onto the wooden floor._

_Oscar then began to wail and scream. He was almost a year old._

_Ozpin was finding it difficult to balance everything. She had adopted a child she barely had time for, Summer had just died, Qrow was drinking more than ever, Tai was distant, Ruby and Yang didn't know what to do with themselves, and work at Beacon kept piling and getting more exhausting._

_Ozpin stood up, almost stumbling onto the ground. She entered the hallway of her bedroom and Oscar's nursery._

_When she walked towards her bedroom, she paused. She peeped into the room. Qrow was lying down on her bed, underneath her green sheets asleep. He had gotten drunk and decided to come to her home instead of a hotel or the Xiao Long-Rose household._

_He looked miserable. He was tossing and turning, dried tears could be seen on his cheeks._

_Ozpin wanted to comfort him and wake him up from whatever nightmare he was having, but Oscar's cries were only growing louder._

_She entered the nursery and went towards the crib. The small baby's eyes were wide, and he was reaching for his mother when he spotted her approaching him._

_He flailed his arms around, his screeching continuing._

_Ozpin picked him up, putting him against her chest and hugging him. His crying quieted down when she began rubbing his back and humming his favorite song._

_She slowly turned around. She gasped and jumped back, hitting the crib behind her. She held Oscar tightly, ignoring his cries that had began again._

_Salem stood in the doorframe of the room. “Hello, dear.”_

Ozpin jolted awake. She bit her tongue in an attempt to hold back a yelp.

Glynda jumped up from Ozpin’s desk that she was occupying at the moment. She rushed towards the headmaster.

“Ozpin,” Glynda whispered. “Ozpin, look at me. You’re okay.”

She put her hands on the woman’s shoulders. Ozpin’s chest returned to it’s normal, slow pace. Her hyperventilating stopped with time.

Ozpin reached for her scroll. She checked the time. It was three in the morning.

The outdoors were still dark. The broken moon and the stars in the distance that appeared small were the only sources of light besides the advanced technology generously provided by the kingdom of Atlas over the years.

Ozpin sat up on the couch. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes tightly.

Goodwitch asked, “Nightmare?”

“Yes,” Ozpin mumbled.

“You should go home, Oz.”

Ozpin faced Glynda. She said, “No. I can’t. Salem—”

“Ozpin,” Glynda interjected. “Go home and rest, or I will drag you to your house. Let me handle Salem.”

“How are you going to do that?”

“Well, first; I’m going to figure out how and why that raging b—” Glynda paused when she saw the glare Ozpin was giving her. “I’ll figure it out. Just go home.”

Ozpin nodded. She rose from her seat on the couch.

___

Later in the morning, the sunshine came through the blinds. Team RWBY was awake and either tired or energized.

“Who was that chick?” Yang asked out loud.

“Hmm?” Blake murmured.

Yang replied, “That woman from last night. The one who was talking to Auntie Oz.”

Ruby shrugged. “No clue. She looked kinda scary though.”

Weiss looked up from her scroll. She said, “Why does it matter anyway? It’s not like we’re going to ever see her again.”

“Yeah,” Ruby responded in agreement, “but she gives me a bad feeling. Ozzie didn’t seem to like her too. I know it’s weird—”

“No, I was goin’ to say the same thing!” Yang interrupted.

“Can we talk about something else?” Blake requested with a soft voice.

“Sure!” Yang quickly replied.

Ruby nudged her with a smirk on her face. Yang pushed her back, the red blush growing on her face.

Weiss and Blake watched the two siblings. They exchanged puzzled looks.

“What about your uncle?” Weiss asked. “He seems to really like Professor Pine— Ozpin, I mean.”

Ruby and Yang’s heads immediately snapped towards the Schnee heiress.

“What?” Ruby snorted. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” Blake pondered, “have you seen the way he looks at her? They like each other. It’s pretty obvious.”

Yang muttered, “Huh.”

“Matchmaking!” Ruby squealed.

“Oh, god. I swear if you say that it will be—” Weiss complained, getting cut off by the younger girl before she could finish.

“— another great team bonding exercise? Yes, it will be!”

Yang nodded, letting herself fall onto the end of Blake’s bed. “Hell yeah, let’s do it.”

“Yes, let’s play with the lives of two individuals and try to get them together without them knowing,” Blake deadpanned.

Ruby, Yang, and Weiss all stared at Blake.

Blake then said, still with a blank expression on her face, “I’m down. Let’s do it.”

The rest of the team turned to Weiss for her answer.

Weiss gave up and threw her hands in the air. She sighed. “Fine.”

“Yay!” Ruby shouted with excitement.

___

RWBY got ready for class. They scurried through the hallways since they were late (thanks to Ruby and Yang’s shenanigans).

“Ladies!” Dr. Oobleck called when he spotted the four girls. “You’re late again.”

“Sorry, Professor Oobleck—” Ruby said.

“ _Doctor_!” Barty quickly corrected, an annoyed look on his face from the many times he’s been called professor. “No matter. It’s not me you should be apologizing to.”

He turned to a woman behind him who was hiding in the shadows of the large classroom.

“This is Ms. Fall,” he introduced. “As you all know, the current topic we are researching is the Great War. Ms. Fall will be borrowing a few of my classes in order to teach about religion and mythology, and what parts they played in the Great War.”

“Is that—” Yang murmured to Ruby, drifting off and letting the sight in front of them speak for herself.

Salem stood next to Bartholomew as he went on about what her teachings would be about. Students in the classroom groaned and pouted.

“Yep,” Ruby whispered in response. She leaned in next to Weiss. “Never gonna see her again, huh?”

“No need to be formal,” Salem announced to Oobleck and the class. “You can call me Salem.”

She walked towards the chalkboard behind her. She grabbed a piece of chalk and began writing.

The board read, “Grimm religion.”

“Can anyone tell me what this is?” Salem asked.

Nothing.

No one raised their hand. The only sound in the room was the occasional cough or movement from a student.

Slowly, Ruby raised her hand.

Salem smiled at the participation. “Yes?”

“I think the Grimm religion worships the God of Darkness and the creatures of Grimm that he created,” Ruby answered with hesitance.

“Excellent!” Salem said with glee. She stepped closer to Ruby. “You must be one of Ozpin’s nieces, correct?”

Ruby nodded, pointing at Yang as well. “Yeah, Yang and I are her nieces.”

“Well, she is just so lucky to have you two for nieces then,” Salem complimented. She gave them a small smile and returned to her lesson. 

Yang and Ruby exchanged glances filled with confusion and worry.

“She is seriously giving me weird vibes, dude,” Yang whispered to her younger sister.

“Could you two not?” Weiss grumbled through her teeth. She clenched her teeth, so she wouldn’t get too loud and yell at her teammates. “It doesn’t matter. She’s just a teacher. We don’t need to turn into detectives and find out everything about this woman.”

Ruby and Yang stared at Weiss. They raised their brows. Their frowns slowly turned into smiles as the idea formed in their heads.

“No,” Weiss murmured, pointing her manicured figure at the sisters. “Not happening.”

“So happening,” Yang said.

Ruby agreed, “Yep.”

_This was going to be a long rest of the year._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed!


	4. Junior Detectives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> RWBY, Oscar, Sun, and Neptune investigate Salem.  
> Qrow tries to shot his shot... and gets interrupted again.

Oscar visited his cousins and Uncle Tai whenever he could— usually when his mother was busy with galas and meetings in different kingdoms. She often returned the next morning, but sometimes she came back a whole day or two later. 

Oscar would be a little upset every time his mother told him she was leaving, but Yang and Ruby would always cheer him up.

Today, his mother told him that there was some sort of emergency that she was trying to handle with Auntie Glynda, so he would be staying with the Xiao Long-Rose family for a few hours.

However, his cousins were acting strange— well, _stranger_ than usual.

"Do you know a Salem Fall by any chance?" Ruby eagerly asked him.

Oscar furrowed his brows at her. He replied with hesitance, "No?"

Yang was on her laptop, typing away on the couch. She squinted at the screen once she found search results.

"Actually," Oscar said, "I think I've heard that name before. I think she's the owner of the Evernight Castle Library."

"Yeah, she is," Yang confirmed, pointing at the spot on the screen that supported Oscar's guess.

Oscar then asked, "Why? I mean— why is Salem Fall important to you? Who is she?"

"That is what we are trying to figure out," explained Ruby.

"Why?" the younger boy inquired again, the look on his face growing more puzzled with every second.

"She seems... weird. I don't know how to explain it." Ruby shrugged. She shifted sitting positions, so she could directly look at Oscar. "Your mom doesn't seem to like her at all. When we first saw Salem, Ozpin looked like she was about to murder her!"

"Oz is really good at hiding the fact that she doesn't like someone when she's talking to them," Yang added. "But she wasn't even trying though. Now that I think about it, she kinda seemed—"

"— _scared_ ," Ruby said.

Oscar forced out a nervous laugh. "What?"

"We're trying to figure it out." Ruby checked her scroll. "Weiss and Blake should be arriving at any minute. They agreed to help us out."

"You wanna come along?" Yang asked, extending her arms in the air to stretch. She stood up from the couch.

"I guess, sure."

"Cool!" Ruby squealed.

A knock on the door caught their attention. Ruby gladly opened the door.

"I am so sorry," Weiss said when she entered. Blake stood next to her.

The heiress pointed behind herself. Sun and Neptune were there.

Elucidated Weiss, "We accidentally told them that we're investigating someone. These two idiots wouldn't go away no matter what, so we are stuck with them now."

"The more the merrier!" Ruby exclaimed, ignoring Weiss’ annoyed expression.

Neptune pointed finger-guns at the group, and Sun grinned with glee.

"Alright!" Ruby scurried to a piece of paper on a table near the couches. She scanned it quickly and looked back at the group. "Yang, you said you have a shady friend— I won't tell dad anything only because this will help us— so talk to him and see what you can get."

Yang nodded.

"But, here's the problem, there are too many of us—"

Weiss glared at the Neptune and Sun.

"— so Neptune and Oscar; you're going with Yang!"

Oscar agreed with a thumbs-up, while Neptune looked confused.

"Wait, what?" he exclaimed. "Wouldn't it be better if I stayed with Sun?"

Yang said with a large smirk, "You can go back to your boyfriend later, dude."

Neptune's cheeks went crimson red, and he murmured something under his breath. Yang hit him roughly in the shoulder with full force and almost caused him to fall.

Ruby continued, "Sun, Blake; you're going to the Evernight Castle library. Ask around, see who works there."

The two Faunus nodded without protest.

"And Weiss and I will talk to Ozpin!" Ruby announced.

Weiss turned to the younger girl. "We are?"

"I personally know Oz really well— I'm her favorite niece— so I can probably ask her a thing or two."

"Ruby, wouldn't it be better if Oscar went with you? He is her son after all, and the professor and I have never once spoken or been near each other."

"Well," Ruby replied, "we have an actual reason to ask about Salem. We're just students asking about a new teacher. That's not suspicious at all."

Weiss sighed. "Right."

Ruby pointed at her brain. "See? I'm smart."

"Sure," Weiss whispered, staring at her teammate with a look of wonder.

"Alright, team, let's go!" Ruby shrieked, throwing her fist in the air.

___

Qrow took a swig of his drink. Only small drops of alcohol remained in the glass. He nodded at the bartender to pour him another drink.

"Junior!" one of the bodyguards shouted. "She's back!"

Junior's head snapped towards his henchmen who were locking the doors. They pushed their bodies against the doors, holding back whatever was behind it.

A blonde teenager burst through the door, knocking down the men without any trouble.

"Yang?" Qrow muttered. He rose from the stool he had been sitting in.

Yang yelled to the whole club, "I'm back!"

The bodyguards surrounded Yang, and they pointed their weapons at her. Junior rushed through the crowd.

"Blondie, what the hell are you doing here?" Junior asked.

"We could ask you the same thing," Neptune said, slowly coming out of his hiding place behind Yang.

"This is my goddamn club, kid."

"Oh. Well, I—"

"Shut up, Neptune," Yang interrupted with a harsh tone.

Oscar stopped hiding behind Yang as well. "Um— Yang, you said you had a shady friend here. I get the shady part, but I don't see any friends here."

Qrow had to forcefully shut his mouth when his jaw dropped from the sight he was staring at. His niece, his friend/crush's kid, and some random student just stormed into the _fucking_ bar.

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna kick their asses again." Yang pointed at the Malachite twins who were in the corner, watching. She spat with a grin, "Though I would love to."

The sisters practically hissed at her. They retreated to the bar part of the club, so they could start serving drinks like they were supposed to.

"Anyway," Yang said, "I just have a few questions that I'm hoping you can answer."

Junior eventually called off his men, and he nodded in agreement.

"Okay, wonderful. Do you know a Salem Fall?"

"Salem?" Junior repeated the name. He then laughed. "That _bitch_? My buddy, Roman, comes in here all the time and complains about that chick. I've never met her and don't wanna."

Oscar winced at the curse word. Neptune simply watched with awe as Yang and this grown man spoke.

"Kid, I don't know why you're asking 'bout her, but here's some advice; you don't want to meet her." Junior then pointed at his customers and regulars. "Are we done? If you don't mind, I have work."

"Yeah, we're done here," Yang said with a sigh. She looked down to the side, pondering on Junior's words.

She slowly turned to speak to Oscar and Neptune. She jumped and almost yelped when she got face-to-face with her uncle.

"Jesus! What the hell, Qrow!" she shrieked.

"Why are you in a club?" he asked, hands on his hips and a tired look on his face.

"Um," Yang stammered. "I needed... information. I got it. It isn't a big deal."

"You walked into a club known for bar fights and illegal business with your twelve-year-old cousin and some random kid."

"This isn't my first rodeo," claimed Yang defensively.

"Yeah," Qrow grunted in response, "you made that pretty clear with Junior. You two know each other. I heard about a fight in here awhile back with a teenager— didn't think it was you."

Loud ringing from a scroll on the bar counter interrupted the conversation.

Qrow sighed. He turned to Yang and asked, "Could you get my scroll?"

"Sure," Yang grumbled as Qrow went on to lecture Oscar and Neptune (mainly Oscar because he didn't know nor care about Neptune).

Yang grabbed Qrow's scroll, and she pressed the accept button without thinking. She put it to her ear.

" _Hello, Mr. Branwen. This is the Vale hospital_ ," the voice on the other line stated. " _Your sister, Raven, has gotten into some sort of fight. She is stable_ —"

Yang hung up on the caller.

Qrow hollered to her, "Who was it?"

"Wrong number!" she lied.

She took a deep breath. Afterward, she stood up straight and strutted back towards Qrow. She handed the scroll to him, and she grabbed Oscar and Neptune.

She left before Qrow could say anything else.

___

The Evernight Castle Library was quiet as every library should be.

Blake and Sun scanned the whole place when they entered. Not much could be seen from the front of the library, but they could see two people they recognized.

Emerald and Mercury were organizing the library bookshelves.

Emerald glanced at the entrance when she heard the bell that notified her when someone entered the library.

The twins were acquainted with team RWBY even though they were two years older.

"Hey," Emerald greeted, "how can I help you?"

Blake approached the green-haired girl. "Do you know about that new teacher at school? I believe she owns this library," she said.

"New teacher?" Mercury murmured the question, turning slightly to make eye contact with the Faunus.

Emerald hit him in the shoulder. She snarled at him, "She means Grandma, you idiot."

"Oh," Mercury quietly whispered.

Emerald turned back to Blake and Sun.

"Grandma?" Sun repeated the word. He wore a face filled with confusion.

Emerald replied, "She isn't our actual grandmother. We just call her that. Yeah, Salem owns the place. Why do you ask?"

"Just curious," Blake answered, not hesitating to lie to the other girl. "I go here often and thought I recognized her in class."

"Alright," Emerald simply replied. She returned to her work.

Sun and Blake made eye contact. They shared glances at one another and nodded, satisfied with the information they received.

___

"Oz!" Ruby squealed when she spotted the headmaster in the hallways of Beacon.

"Ruby?" Ozpin looked behind the young girl to see Weiss who seemed to be keeping her distance. "Ms. Schnee? Do you two need assistance with anything?"

"Yes," Ruby answered. She went in for a hug. She immediately reached into Ozpin's pockets.

Ruby pouted and looked up at her aunt with disappointment.

"I don't always have candy and cookies on me, Ruby. I thought you would have learned by now," Ozpin laughed.

"Ruby— Professor— Um," Weiss stammered. She stood up straight and stepped forward. "Ruby and I have a question about a teacher here at Beacon."

"Oh, yeah!" Ruby realized. "You know Ms. Fall? The new teacher?"

Ozpin's smile fell. The blank, almost emotionless facial expression she had a tendency to wear had returned.

"Yes, I do," she admit. She let go of Ruby who had been still holding onto her. "Why do you ask?"

"Well she's new, and it's almost the end of the year. Couldn't Dr. Oobleck just teach her lessons about the Great War and Vytal since it's his class?" Weiss explained.

Ozpin covered her growing frown with her coffee mug. She lifted it to her lips and swallowed down air. The mug had already been empty to begin with.

She sighed. "I admit that Ms. Fall is an... unexpected and slightly unnecessary addition to Beacon's staff. However, it was Haven's headmaster who put her here."

"Why?" Weiss inquired, leaning forward.

"I suppose it was for the Vytal festivals. Vale is hosting again after all."

Ruby said, "Alright. She seems a little off though, don't you think?"

Ozpin quickly informed her, "That is none of my business unless Ms. Fall is violating rules. If so, immediately report to me and Professor Goodwitch."

"Okay, Oz, you don't gotta go full teacher robot mode," Ruby joked. She forced out a nervous and hesitant laugh when she saw Ozpin's still blank face.

She said, "Of course. Now if you don't mind me, I have important duties to attend to."

Ruby and Weiss watched as Ozpin left, her empty mug and cane in both hands.

A ding startled Ruby. She grabbed the scroll in the pockets of her skirt.

_**Yang** : My contact said Salem isn't liked all that much._

Ruby nudged Weiss to look at the text message. Another arrived in the team RWBY group chat.

_**Yang** : apparently some guy named Roman really doesn't like her. That's all I got. What about you guys?_

**Ruby** _: Oz started acting strange when we brought up Salem to her._

_**Yang** : she went full robot mode again?_

_**Ruby** : yeah. We're gonna head back home._

_**Yang** : hey, Blake. What about you and Sun?_

_**Blake** : Emerald and Mercury from team EMMM say she's family._

_**Ruby** : Ok. Everyone go back. We'll meet back at the house._

___

"Hey," Qrow mumbled the greeting when he spotted Glynda in the hallways.

Glynda stared at him for a moment. She looked him up and down. "Are you really drunk on school grounds?"

Qrow slurred in response, "What do you honestly expect?"

"Good point," Glynda said. "Anyway, you want something. What is it?"

"Is Oz throwing herself at her work?" he asked. This time he didn't slur his words.

Goodwitch looked up at him with a glare.

"I know Ozpin well, Glynda. She works a lot when she's stressed."

The blonde woman's death stares slowly softened into a look filled with exhaustion and worry.

"This morning," she told him, "she forgot to eat. She can barely concentrate right now with everything that's going on."

Qrow inquired, "What's going on?"

She didn't answer.

"C'mon, Glynda." He placed his calloused hands on his hips and stepped closer to the woman. "You said it yourself, I can make her happy. Tell me what's wrong and let me talk to her."

Glynda sighed. "I can't— I can't tell you. But... you can talk to her. She most likely won't tell you what the issue is but helping her is the only thing that really matters."

She saw Qrow's relieved face. She pointed at the Beacon tower.

She said to him, "She's in her office."

___

_Team STRQ sat in the seats in front of the headmaster’s large desk._

_Summer had nervousness and worry written all over her face, and she almost looked innocent— even though she’s the one who threw an opened water bottle at another team._

_Tai was fidgeting in his seat. He was always up for a good prank or fight but talking his way out of punishment after getting caught wasn’t something he was great at._

_Raven and Qrow, on the other hand, were raised on rough streets surrounded by junkies and gangs. They could get out of about anything, and this headmaster wasn’t anything compared to a gang leader._

_“Do any of you mind explaining why there was a food fight in the cafeteria?” Ozpin asked calmly while an aggravated Glynda Goodwitch stood by her, ready to scream and give them the worst punishments she could think of._

_There was a moment of silence between the group. Ozpin kept staring into the souls of the students without even blinking._

_Summer gulped. She blurted out while pointing at Qrow, “He started it!”_

_“Snitch!” Qrow snarled immediately. “You’re the one who started throwing food at them!”_

_Raven said, “To be fair, Q, you did insult them a few times.”_

_“They also got up and started walking towards us like they were going to kill us!” Tai exclaimed._

_“They were bein’ assholes to some Faunus girl,” Qrow added in his defense. He slumped in the chair and crossed his arms at the professors in front of him._

_“Language,” Glynda warned._

_“Make sure,” Ozpin told the teacher, “to bring that up with the other students when you yell— I mean, speak to them.”_

_Goodwitch glared at her for a moment, but she nodded._

_“What else happened?” Ozpin inquired further._

_Summer said, “They were being mean, so we decided to say something. Qrow said some things that— uh— upset them, you could say. They started going towards us, I panicked and threw water at them.”_

_Ozpin mumbled with no emotion in her voice, “How noble.”_

_“Then Qrow threw a whole tray of food at ‘em,” Raven chuckled. “It was truly amazing. The rest of us started throwing food, and a food war began.”_

_“That doesn’t explain the broken tables,” Glynda grumbled._

_Ozpin thought for a moment. She rested her chin on the knuckles of her pale hands. “One day of detention and cleaning up the cafeteria.”_

_“That’s it?” Glynda almost yelled._

_Team STRQ cheered silently. They had only heard rumors of Goodwitch’s punishments that could be labeled_

_sadistic, and they were expecting worse consequences._

_“They’ll clean the cafeteria with the other team—”_

_“Wait, what?” Qrow interrupted, though Ozpin was ignoring him._

_“— so they can learn about cooperation and teamwork.”_

_The students had also heard about the headmaster’s hidden lessons behind her punishments._

_“Hell no, not happening!” Raven barked._

_“There are worse things that could happen, Ms. Branwen.” Ozpin gestured to the blonde teacher next to her. “Would you prefer the other options that Professor Goodwitch has personally favorited?”_

_Raven went silent, pondering for a moment while still glaring at Ozpin._

_“Rae,” Qrow whispered, “we can handle those jackasses again. We’ve been through worse.” He was leaning in close to his sister, his arm on her armrest._

_“Fine,” she agreed with a sigh._

_Summer and Tai nodded quickly. When Ozpin dismissed them, they rushed to the elevator._

_Once they were gone, Glynda faced the professor._

_“Are you seriously going to favorite them?”_

_Ozpin put on a dramatic look of shock and betrayal. She placed her hand on her heart and cried, “I have no idea what you could possibly be talking about. Why would you accuse me of such a thing?”_

_Goodwitch sighed. She groaned, “I’ll make sure they actually clean the cafeteria and don’t kill each other.”_

_“Thank you, Glynda.”_

___

Ozpin poured Qrow a cup of tea when he arrived.

“I remember the good ol’ days in here,” Qrow said, “gettin’ in trouble all the time and Glynda yelling at us.”

“And now team RWBY is taking after you,” Ozpin added. “They destroyed the cafeteria a few weeks ago. They had a food fight with JNPR.”

“Don’t tell me they lost.”

Oz explained with a fond smile, “Yang, Ms. Belladonna, and Ms. Schnee were taken out by JNPR, however, Ruby beat all four of them.”

“Hell yeah, attagirl,” Qrow murmured into a mug.

“May I ask why you are here?” the headmaster finally inquired.

“I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

Ozpin turned around. She furrowed her eyebrows at the man in front of him. “What do you mean?”

“You’ve seemed stressed lately,” Qrow answered. He placed the cup of tea down. He leaned forward in his seat, resting his elbows on his dirty jeans.

When she looked away for a moment, Qrow whispered, “Hey.”

Oz looked back at him.

“You could always take a small break. Forget whatever’s been bothering you for just a few minutes.”

“And how do you propose I do that?”

“Well...” Qrow drifted off.

_Maybe this was a bad idea,_ he thought. _Maybe Glynda was wrong. I can’t be with her._

_Bad luck charm_ , he heard the cruel whispers of his mother and sister.

He gulped. “Look, Oz. You should head home and be with your kid. He seems lonely and upset that you’re never there.”

Ozpin looked down. She raised her mug to her lips, hiding half her face in shame.

Qrow sighed. “We’ve already seen what happens when a child is forgotten by their mother.”

The mention of Yang and Raven made Ozpin’s head turn back to him.

“I’m not saying you’re like Raven,” Qrow quickly assured. “You’re not. You’re nothing like her. It’s just that... it could take a toll on Oscar.”

_Good job, Qrow. You just accidentally offended her_ , he thought. He watched her facial expressions change.

When he brought up his sister and compared the woman to her, she looked almost shocked. Her lips were parted, though nothing was coming out of her mouth.

Her face slowly changed back into her usual calm and understanding look.

There was a horrible taste of iron and bitterness in Qrow’s mouth.

“Or we could do something else,” he offered. “Maybe we could go for breakfast tomorrow. Get you real food, not coffee and bagels.”

“I don’t eat bagels,” Oz muttered.

“Bagels, toast, croissants— whatever. You know what I mean.”

She smiled at him for a second. A small chuckle escaped her lips.

“I suppose we could—” Ozpin stopped herself when the ding alerting her of someone wanting to come in from the elevator interrupted her. “Come in.”

The elevator doors opened.

Salem stood there, leaning against a wall. “Hello, Ozpin.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!  
> I’m thinking about creating a work just for RWBY oneshots. If you are interested in this idea, let me know and even give a request.
> 
> (I will only do ships I am comfortable with— though I can make exceptions, you just need to speak with me first.)
> 
> Comment as much as you please! <3


	5. A Step Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More questions about Ozpin and Salem’s relationship arise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> better late than never!
> 
> Sorry for the wait :(  
> I’ve been stressed with other things and I’ve been putting most of my motivation into something else.

RWBY and SN had decided to go back to the dorms instead of the Xiao Long-Rose household when they saw Qrow on the path to the house. 

The whole way to the dorms, Yang couldn't stop thinking about Raven.

She had found out about her shortly after Summer's death. Yang tried to find Raven numerous times only to be dragged back home by Tai or Qrow.

Now that Yang was older and had more freedom since she was away from home now, she had begun looking for her mother again. She spoke with shady people, and she also got into fights with people that left her with bruises and a large mess to clean up.

The hospital had called about Raven getting injured after getting into a fight.

 _Guess we're not all that different_ , Yang thought to herself. She let out a small scoff.

"Yang?" Ruby called. "Yang? Hello? Hey, dumbass! Pay attention!"

Ruby threw a pillow at Yang that immediately got her to come back to reality.

"Right. Yeah, sorry," Yang mumbled as the group stared at her. "I just spaced out."

Weiss said, "Sure. Anyway, we were saying that no one really likes Salem."

"What are we going to do with this information?" Blake asked, scooting closer to the group. She sat next to Yang.

"We are going to— I have no idea," Ruby admit, looking down and trying to figure out what they should do as Weiss complained about Ruby being unprepared and irresponsible.

"Hey," Blake whispered when Yang began spacing out again. "You alright?"

Yang turned her head to the Faunus. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Yang took a deep breath as Blake gave up. They both turned back to the group, an unspoken agreement to not say anything to each other being made.

Yang took out her scroll. She glanced at a picture she had saved among the many photos of her with RWB_ and friends.

This specific picture was of team STRQ.

Yang had been able to sneak a photo of it on her scroll. Summer, Tai, Raven, and Qrow when they were students at Beacon were all in the picture, standing side by side.

According to Qrow, it had taken multiple attempts in order to get the right picture.

They also had a photograph of them in the army. It was hung up on one of the walls of the house. Tai couldn't get himself to take down the picture.

Yang stared at the young Raven. She hadn't been any older than Yang when the photo was taken.

With a sigh, Yang placed the scroll away.

___

"She's looking again," Qrow announced, then taking a long sip of his beer.

Qrow was used to leaving Ozpin when she had all sorts of different meetings that didn't allow him to speak to her much, but he definitely wasn't used to getting kicked out.

When that Salem woman arrived, Ozpin had practically pushed Qrow into the elevator.

He had mentioned the woman to Glynda when he was leaving the school grounds, and she started running towards the elevator (while wearing heels).

Qrow found it all to be fucking weird. He decided to visit Tai and his best friend, alcohol.

"Who?" Tai asked.

"Yang," Qrow answered. "She snoopin' around again. I found her at a bar talking to Junior."

"Isn't that the guy that's been rumored to be in business with criminals?"

"Yep."

"You're kidding."

"I'm not." Qrow looked up at Tai, leaning against the back of the chair he was perched on. "And the best part— you ready for this? Oscar was there too."

Tai quickly asked with wide eyes, "Oz's kid?"

"You fucking bet," Qrow grumbled. "I don't know why but Yang somehow dragged him into this shit."

"Does Ozpin know?"

Qrow answered, "I didn't tell her."

He sighed, taking another swig of his beer. "She's been busy with other things. Some chick keeps bothering her."

"What do you mean?" Tai inquired. He crossed his arms and took a seat across from his former teammate.

Qrow said, "There's this new teacher at Beacon. I've tried asking Oz on a— I've tried speaking to Oz twice and this woman just pops up out of nowhere."

A grin grew across Tai's face. "Have you been trying to ask Ozpin on a date?"

"Fuck off," Qrow muttered. He threw a crumpled piece of paper at Tai.

"What? You have been trying to get with her for, like, _ever_ ," Tai replied while laughing.

"Well, you can't tell me you haven't looked at Oz and thought _'damn, I wanna tap that ass_ '."

"No, I haven't."

There was a moment of silence between the two. Tai burst into laughter, holding onto the edge of the dinner table so he wouldn't topple over. Qrow covered his face, a smile almost splitting his face in half as he chuckled.

"I say go for it, dude," Tai told him when he stopped laughing. "Live your dreams and all that shit."

Qrow snorted, pulling his beer away from his lips in order to cover his mouth. "You really think so?"

"You're lonely as hell, and I'm getting sick of you sleeping on my couch," Tai explained, " _so yes._ "

Qrow's jaw dropped dramatically. He hit his brother-in-law in the shoulder. He swallowed down the rest of the alcohol. 

___

"Why are you here?" Ozpin asked, crossing her arms at the woman across from her. Glynda stood next to Ozpin.

Salem glanced at Goodwitch. She looked her up and down. She looked back at Oz.

"Is she your new girlfriend? Why is she always here?"

Glynda stepped forward, ignoring Ozpin when she grabbed her arm in an attempt to stop her.

She snarled, "I'm here because you're obviously planning something. You're lucky we haven't called the police."

"The authorities?" Salem laughed. "Call them. What are they going to do? Arrest an innocent teacher only trying to educate her students?"

Glynda scoffed, but she remained silent.

Salem rested her chin on her knuckles. She thought for a second. She lifted her head and stared at Ozpin.

She asked, "Or was it that man who's your new boyfriend?" She slumped in her seat. "Let me say, your standards have dropped."

Ozpin glared at the woman. "Did you come all the way across campus to insult me, Salem?"

"No," Salem simply answered. She sighed when Ozpin and Glynda furrowed their brows at each other.

"Well, not entirely, anyway." She elaborated, "I'm here to make amends."

" _Amends_?" Glynda griped quietly.

"There are less complex ways of doing that," Ozpin responded. "You could have made a call, or arranged a meeting."

"Oh, because you would have listened to me?" Salem sneered.

Ozpin sighed. She clasped her hands together. "I mean, you didn't need to ask Lionheart for a job at Beacon only to 'make amends'."

"Well, teaching is a passion of mine," claimed the other woman.

The white-haired woman raised a brow at Salem. Her face said it all, Ozpin wasn't convinced.

"It's true!" she cried. "I love to teach."

She waved her hands around elegantly in an attempt to convince the professor.

Salem looked to the side for a moment. "Well, those students can be brats—" she glanced at Ozpin and Glynda and saw their disapproving expressions— "but that's not what this is about!"

"You truly want to make amends?" Ozpin asked, leaning forward in her seat.

"When she's gone," Salem mumbled, looking at Glynda from the corner of her eye.

Goodwitch barked immediately, "Not happening."

Salem shifted in her seat, now facing the other professor. "What is your problem with me?"

"I have many problems with you. You'll have to be more specific," Glynda growled. She backed off when Ozpin's hand gestured for her to step back.

“Ozpin, dear, it’s been years.” Salem faced the headmaster. “Can’t you and I just—”

Ringing interrupted the conversation.

Salem grabbed a scroll from her pocket.

“Cinder, what do you want?” she asked in an irritated tone. After a pause, she said, “You what? You’re an imbecile. I’ll be there in a few minutes. Don’t do anything stupid.”

She sighed, and she put the scroll down. She looked up at the two women.

“I have to go,” she announced. “We’ll finish this conversation another time.”

She stood up from her seat. She went to the elevator and left.

Glynda muttered, “What a b—”

“Glynda,” warned Ozpin.

“You have horrible taste,” Goodwitch added. “First her, and now Qrow?

Ozpin turned to her friend, a tint of pink on her cheeks. “Qrow?”

Glynda let out a groan of annoyance. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, ignoring her friend’s reaction. 

___

Ruby lied down on her top bunk, sprawled out on her blankets.

She said aloud to her teammates, “What if Salem and Oz were friends?”

“Rubes, they don’t seem like they’re friends,” replied Yang.

“I said ‘ _were_ ’, dumbass,” Ruby remarked. She sat up on her bed, stretching her arms up in the air. “Maybe something happened between them?”

“Perhaps they were dating?” Blake added.

Ruby snorted loudly. “Auntie Oz, dating? I’ve known her for a really long time. She doesn’t date.”

“Or maybe it was a falling out between colleagues?” Weiss speculated.

“I have no idea,” Ruby admitted. She let her head fall back onto her soft pillow.

Weiss let out a frustrated sigh she had been keeping in. She finally asked, “Why are we doing this again?”

“Hm?” Ruby murmured in response.

“Why are we looking into the life of a woman we don’t even know?” Weiss explained. “Isn’t this, you know, _illegal_?”

Yang tilted her head to the Ice Queen. “If we get arrested, we’ll just use some of your nice rich girl money.”

Blake softly giggled behind her book. Weiss grumbled something as Yang smiled at her.

Ruby stared up at the ceiling with chipped paint and the most boring color. She squinted her eyes up at it as if she could intimate this ceiling into telling her who the hell Salem is to Ozpin. 

___ 

“How stupid could you possibly be?” Salem snarled at the girl in front of her.

Cinder sat in a hospital bed, bruises and cuts creeping up her face and arms. Blood seeped out from behind the bandages.

Her children had left the room to find a vending machine so they could get snacks for themselves and their mother.

“Hey!” Cinder yelled aggressively. “Emerald and Mercury forced me to call you, I didn’t want to.”

“What even happened?” Salem asked, crossing her arms and taking a seat in one of the hospital’s uncomfortable chairs.

Cinder simply replied, “It was just some dumb bar fight.”

“Really?” Salem leaned back in her chair, staring into the woman’s soul.

“ _Yes_ , really. Why do you care?” 

“I don’t,” she responded. She rose up from her seat. “Now if you don’t mind me, I have better things to be doing that don’t include you or your idiocy.”

Cinder watched as Salem walked to the door. She let out a sharp breath.

She called out, “It won’t work.”

Salem turned around. “What?”

“Whatever you’re doing at Beacon, it won’t work,” the brunette elaborated. She saw Salem’s confused expression. “Em and Mercury told me that you’re teaching at Beacon.”

Salem remained silent.

Cinder continued, “What’s your deal with her? Why do you hate Ozpin so much?”

Before Salem could respond, Roman and Neo entered the room.

“Cinder!” Roman exclaimed. “Your dumbass really got into a fight?”

Neo signed something at Cinder that made both Roman and Cinder laugh.

Salem slipped out of the room silently, staying quiet as the group caught up. 

___ 

Glynda had left Ozpin’s office to catch students planning pranks and to yell at whatever TA couldn’t figure out what they were supposed to do.

Ozpin was trying to take her mind off of Salem. She decided to start burying herself in work.

The ding of a notification startled her. She collected herself, taking a deep breath and hoping it was nothing bad.

_**Qrow:** Hey_

Ozpin began typing a response, but Qrow had sent another text.

_**Qrow:** Does 8 work for you tomorrow for breakfast?_

Ozpin caught herself smiling for a moment.

_**Ozpin:** Yes, it does. Where would you like to meet?_

_**Qrow:** I know an amazing café with the best food you could ever dream of._

_**Qrow:** How about we meet at your office and I’ll drive us there?_

_**Ozpin:** That’s fine with me._

_**Qrow:** See you there ;)_

Ozpin giggled softly. She had remembered doing the same thing when Salem would leave a note with breakfasts for her in the morning if she wasn’t available to say good morning in person.

The headmaster covered her mouth, trying to stop her widening smile. She cleared her throat and put away her scroll.

This was a breakfast between friends. That’s all.

This wasn’t a business meeting or a date. It was friends eating together. Right? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No promises, but I will try to get chapters out sooner if you’re all still interested in the story.


	6. Breakfast Between Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Qrow and Ozpin go to a café together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Warning; Abusive Relationship)
> 
> Sorry this was late :(

_The second she heard the loud slam of the front door, Ozpin knew Salem was in one of her moods._

_"Sa—" Ozpin began to say before being cut off._

_"Stop talking," Salem had snarled. She tossed her car keys to the kitchen counter. She hadn't even bothered to look at the other woman._

_Oz glanced down at Salem’s hands. They were in fists, the knuckles almost paperwhite._

_After a few moments of silence, Ozpin told Salem, "I made dinner."_

_She pointed at the dinner table. On it was lasagna. Salem still didn't face Oz._

_"Dear?" she whispered, as she went to place a hand on Salem's shoulder._

_Salem whipped around, hitting away Ozpin's hand. Her blood-red eyes glared at her, her jaw clenched, and her hands still in fists. Her long black nails were digging into the palms of her hands._

_Salem barked, "I told you to stop talking."_

_"Right," Ozpin said quietly. She looked down at the white, marble floor tiling. "Sorry."_

_Salem pinched the bridge of her nose, sighing. "I'm just very tired, honey. My apologies, I didn't mean to lash out."_

_She cupped Ozpin's face. The headmaster looked back at her. Her sorrowful face formed into a calmer, forgiving one._

_Salem embraced the other woman. Ozpin wrapped her arms around her in return._

_She glanced down at a scar on Ozpin's shoulder. Salem remembered the cause of it. She had thrown a glass at Oz. The sharp shards piercing through her clothes and shoulders, and the blood seeping out; an image forever stuck in her brain._

_Salem looked away from it, taking a deep exhale and resting her cheek on Ozpin’s head_.

___

Yang had locked herself in the bathroom and was now taking a nice, long shower as Ruby stood outside the door. She had her arm crossed and she was pouting, loud enough for her sister to hear.

Ruby had still been asleep exactly three minutes after Yang awoke early in the morning. The second she saw Yang about to leave their shared room, Ruby tried to sprint to the bathroom before her, but Yang was bigger and stronger.

_Curse those long arms of hers._

Qrow emerged from the living room. He stretched his arms and rubbed his eyes. They had dark circles under them no matter how many times he had tried to get a good night's sleep.

Ruby glanced at him for a second.

She twitched and looked away.

It was too damn early for her to be dealing with this.

"There are water bottles in the kitchen," she told him.

He knew that she knew he was hungover. He smelled of alcohol and had even spilled some on the same shirt he was wearing last night and currently.

Ruby had dealt with her uncle in this state enough times to know what he'd need.

"Yeah," Qrow mumbled. "Thanks, kiddo."

In order to change the subject, Ruby screeched suddenly, "Yang! Get out of the shower! You're using all the hot water!"

Qrow sucked in a breath, and he flinched when the pain in his head began from the bickering between the two sisters.

"You snooze, you lose!" Yang called back.

Qrow checked the time on his scroll. It was way too early, and his date— _breakfast_ with Oz— wouldn't be starting in a few hours. But he didn't want to take any chances by wasting time.

Qrow roughly knocked on the door. "Hurry up, Firecracker. I have places to be."

"Why? Got a hot date, Qrow?" snickered Yang from the bathroom.

Qrow rolled his eyes, a tint of blush on his cheeks.

Suddenly, Ruby gasped.

Qrow quickly turned to her, his eyes narrowed at her. She grinned up at him, giggles escaping her lips.

"Who is it, Uncle Qrow?" she squealed.

"Nope." Qrow began walking towards the kitchen to get that water bottle Ruby mentioned.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby shrieked behind him. She didn't follow, but instead, she simply laughed with Yang who had poked her head out the door, her hair and clothing soaked with water since she hadn't bothered to dry herself.

Qrow had grabbed a water bottle when he passed by the kitchen. By the time he reached Tai's bedroom, the water bottle was half empty.

Qrow dramatically kicked the door open.

Tai, startled from the sudden noise, jumped up from his bed. "What the fu-"

The other man threw the water bottle at his head, making Tai yelp from the surprise and wince from the pain.

"Wake up, bitch," Qrow grumbled.

"For one goddamn day, can you be a normal person who calmly wakes up his very tired friend in a polite fashion?" Tai asked, annoyance in his voice. He covered his head with his pillow and covers when Qrow turned on the light that was now blinding him.

Qrow thought for a moment, tilting his head to the side and putting his hand on his chin. He looked back at Tai. He said, "Nah. It's better this way."

"You suck." Tai's hand crept out from under the sheets and a middle finger sprung up at Qrow.

"On a good Friday night in the bar's bathroom with a hot guy, yeah, I do," Qrow said with a grin.

Tai poked his head out from his covers. "I thought you were seeing Ozpin?"

Qrow stared at him for a moment. He then stammered, "I— uh— what? Where'd you hear that?"

Tai sat up in his bed. He explained, "Well Glynda told Peach, who told Peter, who told Barty, who told me."

"Oh," Qrow said.

"Yeah, there's a bet throughout the Beacon faculty— it spreads to some of Signal, Atlas, Shade, and Haven too— and it was started by Glynda. I personally bet one hundred lien."

"One hundred lien— on what?" Qrow asked, leaning forward."

"Whether or not you'd finally grow a pair and ask Oz out." Tai then sighed. "Guess I owe Peter one hundred lien now."

"I— we'll talk about that later," mumbled Qrow. "Anyway! I need help with picking out clothes."

Tai said, "Sure—"

"Morning!" shrieked Yang and Ruby in unison. They held a plate of pancakes.

The red-eyed man faced them. He deadpanned, "Do you two understand what an inside voice even is?"

"Nope!" they both told him. The sisters handed the plate of pancakes to Tai.

Tai smiled at them. "Thanks, girls."

"No problem," Yang stated. "Someone has to keep Ruby from burning down the house."

"Me?" Ruby inquired with an overdramatic offended tone. She placed a hand over her heart. "There's a reason people call you 'Firecracker', y'know."

Yang stuck her tongue out at her little sister.

Ruby turned to her uncle and father. She climbed the bed and sat next to Tai.

"Did you know Qrow has a date?" she asked, resting her head in her hands.

"Yeah," Tai simply confirmed.

The sisters gasped.

"Who?"

"Who is it?"

"Woman?"

"Man?"

"Whatever gender?"

"Someone we know?"

" _Who?_ "

Qrow shushed them loudly. "It's none of your business."

Ruby pouted. Yang turned to Tai. After a moment, so did Ruby.

"Oh, god. No," Tai whispered in horror. "Not the puppy eyes!"

Their large, sad eyes looked up at him.

Tai sighed. "It's Oz."

Their acts immediately dropped. Both sisters exchanged stunned looks. They looked to Qrow for confirmation, but he had turned away out of embarrassment.

"Shit, we owe Blake one hundred lien," Ruby suddenly said.

Tai snorted very loudly, and Qrow punched him in the shoulder.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Qrow exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. He grabbed both girls and started pushing them towards the exit. "Alright. The both of you, shoo. Go away."

The sisters groaned and complained, but they eventually gave up when the door was slammed in their faces.

Tai clasped his hands together. "Alright, let's get started."

___ 

"—and I'm extremely exhausted from these demon children. I already drank two cups of coffee, and I only woke up, like, two and a half hours ago," Glynda complained while slumping in a chair in front of Ozpin.

Ozpin glanced at her scroll. Almost 8.

She stood up and walked around her desk. She had decided to wear clothing she considered casual— her usual black pants, black suit jacket, green sweater, and, of course, her green scarf with a small cross on display for all to see in the middle.

She checked her reflection in the windows of her office. She quickly stopped herself.

_Breakfast between friends. Breakfast between friends. Breakfast between—_

"Oz?" Glynda called out. She looked Oz up and down for a moment and quickly noticed how the headmaster had checked how she'd looked in the glass of the windows.

The blonde professor sighed. "You're not one to care about people's opinions on your looks, and yet you're currently showing the opposite. So, Ozpin—" Glynda's eyes became narrowed and intimidating— "who do I need to kill?"

"Mother of the gods, Glynda. Calm down," said Ozpin. "No one needs to be harmed today."

"Then what's wrong?"

Ozpin replied calmly, "Nothing is wrong."

Glynda leaned forward in her seat. "Ozpin Pine—"

"Glynda, no."

"—tell me what is wrong, or I will force it out of you if that's what it comes to."

Ozpin sighed. She finally answered, "I'm going to breakfast with Qrow."

Glynda choked on air. In between coughs, she asked in a bewildered tone, "What?"

"It's just breakfast between friends. That's all," Ozpin told Glynda— though it was mainly for herself too hear as a reminder.

"You're going on a date with Qrow Branwen?" Glynda asked.

"No. Breakfast between fr—"

"Yes, yes. Whatever you say." Glynda waved her hand in her face to get her to stop speaking. She got closer to Oz and examined her.

Ozpin gulped. She fidgeted with her hands as Glynda's very judgmental eyes dragged across every inch of her body.

"The scarf is going to have to go," announced Glynda. She ripped the emerald scarf off of Oz's neck. Ozpin watched as it landed on her large desk.

Ozpin gasped softly. She looked back at Glynda. "What is wrong with my scarf?"

"This is a date, so you want to look you're not going to a meeting with the council." Glynda then stared at Ozpin's suit jacket. She pointed at it and looked at Ozpin, waiting for her to get the message.

Ozpin sighed and slid off the jacket from her shoulders.

Glynda stepped back and scanned her. She nodded in approval.

"Alright, Glynda. May I leave now?" Ozpin asked as if Glynda was her caretaker— in a way, she was.

Glynda replied, "No. First, I need to know how he asked you out."

"Breakfast between friends," muttered Ozpin which only got the other woman to roll her eyes.

Ozpin answered, "He came to my office yesterday and recommended I take 'a small break' or however he put it."

"Then she came along," Glynda grumbled. She saw the frown on her friend's face and immediately changed the subject. "So where are you two going?"

"I don't know," stated Oz. She pulled out her scroll. "I believe he said it was a café. He also said he would pick me up."

Goodwitch snatched the scroll from her hands.

She glared at the text. "He put a winking face?"

"I believe that's what that is—"

"A winking face?" Glynda then sighed. She handed back the scroll.

"Is that a bad sign?" Ozpin quickly inquired.

The woman snorted. "He sent you a winking face and you still think it just a— how did you put it? 'Breakfast between friends'."

"Well, it is," Oz mumbled as Glynda chuckled.

"Alright, whatever you say, Ozpin." Glynda fell back into her seat, watching the oblivious woman in front of her.

Ozpin glanced at her scroll when it made a ding sound.

_**Qrow** : I'm coming up._

Ozpin peered at the elevator doors and awaited Qrow's arrival.

When he reached the floor of Ozpin's office and stepped out of the elevator, she immediately noticed that he had actually cleaned himself quite nicely. He wore a light gray button-up shirt and black jeans with a few rips around the knees. His hair was slicked back.

Qrow looked Ozpin up and down, grinning at her as she approached him.

"Hey," he said.

She looked up at him, a smile across her face. "Hello."

"Gross," muttered Glynda. The other two turned to her. "Well, you two behave yourselves."

They nodded at her. They went to go inside the elevator, but Goodwitch stopped Qrow.

She leaned in close and whispered in a voice that was filled with the terrifying truth, "You do anything to her, and I will cut off your d—"

"Glynda!" Ozpin called, already knowing what she was doing.

Glynda pouted. She let Qrow go. "Have fun, idiots."

"Thank you, Glynda," Ozpin said before the elevator doors completely shut, leaving her and Qrow alone.

___ 

_Qrow and Raven had almost completely cut their mother off by the time they reached middle school, only seeing her when she was forced to visit the principal's office where the twins were put after they got into another fight._

_That was fine with them._

_They had found a new family in a gang._

_They taught the twins how to steal, lie, fight_ , _survive. The sound of bullets and screams became normal to them._

_It wasn't the ideal childhood, but it was the life they were born into._

_One of the lessons they learned from some guy who called himself Lemon— that was his actual name— was that "love is for suckers."_

_The sentence was always at the back of the twins' heads whenever they got a little too close to someone._

_One night, in the dorm room of team STRQ, they decided to play a random board game Summer had hidden under her bed._

_Raven chose to stay on her bunk bed, occasionally looking down at the teenagers bellow h_ er _on the uncomfortable ground._

_After the board game finished and Summer predictably won, the group decided it was finally time to go to bed (even though curfew had passed hours ago)._

_When getting ready for bed, Qrow was pulled to the side by Raven. She whispered in his ear, "Don't get too close."_

_Qrow didn't reply to her. He simply gave her a glare and forcefully pulled his wrist away from her hand. Her nails had clawed him, and he had stared at the marks all night until his exhaustion took over._

___

Qrow had decided to bring Oz to a café he could always count on to fill his stomach whenever he was in Vale.

He moved around a lot and almost never had time to make his own breakfast— Ozpin was probably the same way, minus the moving around.

The place was filled with computer geeks and regulars that simply wanted peace and quiet.

Ozpin hummed with please at the silence. "This is quite a nice establishment."

The café smelled of, as expected, coffee. There were a variety of cupcakes, muffins, croissants, doughnuts, and cookies on display at the front counter behind a glass. On the menu, there were sandwiches, salads, pancakes, and waffles.

Ozpin had settled on a cup of hot chocolate and a muffin, while Qrow chose as a sandwich and black coffee— which he definitely put gin from his flask in.

Ozpin gave a disapproving look when he did so, though she didn't say anything.

"How are the girls doing?" Qrow asked. He took a large bite of his sandwich, and he awaited an answer.

"They're getting along with their teammates, though they repeatedly keep getting into trouble," Ozpin answered calmly. She raised her mug to her lips and sipped the drink. "I fear they might be bad influences on Miss Schnee and Miss Belladonna, however, it appears Ruby and Yang's— how should I put this?— antics have gotten those two to loosen up a bit."

"Ya scared Jacq-ass Schnee is gonna come all the way to Beacon because his daughter is suddenly rebellious?" Qrow laughed.

Ozpin smiled softly. "I believe Miss Schnee has always been quite rebellious, like her sister."

Qrow's nose scrunched up in annoyance at the mention of Winter.

Ozpin noticed, and she told him, "Winter Schnee isn't that bad, Qrow."

Qrow grumbled in response, "She's a bootlicker, just like everyone else in the Army."

"Weren't you in the Army, Qrow?" Ozpin replied.

A brow was raised at him, and he stared back at her. "I mean the Atlesian Army, Oz. I would rather die than have to take orders from James."

Ozpin said, "You're being hammy."

Qrow gestured to himself. "Well, I do like ham."

The headmaster chuckled, covering half her mouth with her knuckles. She explained through giggles, "No, Qrow, that word has nothing to do with ham. I mean you're being overdramatic."

"Oh." Qrow took a sip of his coffee. "I guess that makes more sense."

The professor laughed again.

Qrow smiled. "So, uh, how's Oscar?"

"He's doing well. He's getting better grades,” Oz answered, “though he seems to struggle with bonding with his peers.”

“Every kid’s like that, Pin.” Qrow took a large gulp of his combination of coffee and alcohol.

“I suppose, yes.”

“He goes to Signal, right?”

“Correct.”

“And Ruby and Yang just left Signal,” Qrow sighed. “The pipsqueak’s lonely without ‘em, huh? I’m sure he’ll survive without his cousins.”

“That’s the thing,” said Ozpin, “he’s only ever had his family. I don’t think he’s ever had a real friend.”

“Well, you know how I was back in the day. Never wanted to be near anyone, and no one wanted to be near me.”

“Well, you had Raven, did you not?” Ozpin remarked, her gold eyes looking at him with curiosity. She raised her coffee up and sipped.

Qrow grunted in response.

Ozpin quickly changed the subject back to her son. “Oscar was never a talkative child, always buried in books and homework.”

“Don’t worry, Oz, the kid’ll be fine,” Qrow assured.

“I hope so.” Ozpin glanced at her scroll when she heard a ding!

_**Glynda** : Team RWBY and JNPR put mice in Port’s classroom again. Get your ass back here._

Ozpin stood from her seat. “I have to go.”

Qrow rose up as well. He asked with a smug grin, “Let me guess; some prank?”

“You need to stop telling your nieces all of your past pranks.”

Qrow chuckled. “Never.”

Ozpin smiled once more, her eyes glistening in the sunlight. She took out her wallet and began taking out lien.

“Oh, don’t. Oz, I’m paying,” Qrow said, putting a hand up to stop her.

“No offense, Qrow, but we both know you’re unemployed.”

“Hey,” the man whispered dramatically. “Okay, fine, let’s at least pay half ‘n half.”

Ozpin nodded. They both placed down lien on the table.

“I had a nice time, Qrow,” said Oz.

Qrow grinned back at her, watching her exit the café.

Qrow slumped back into his seat. He leaned against the window, resting his cheek on the knuckles of his hand.

After a few moments of peace and quiet, a woman approached him. A woman with familiar red eyes and a large, tangled mess of black hair.

Qrow stared at her with a scowl. “Oh, for _fucks_ sake.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed!


	7. Old Scars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raven and Qrow talk, this leads to other conversations. RWBY goes shopping, and Oscar has an interesting day at school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Warning; Racism, Use of transphobic and homophobic slurs)

In front of Qrow was his sister. He snarled when she sat down across from him, "What the hell do you want?"

Raven had a few bruises around her face. Everything else was hidden by her loose, long-sleeved black shirt.

"I can't visit my baby brother?" Raven said. There was a fake smile on her face.

"You're only older by, like, four minutes," Qrow grumbled, "and we both know you're not the catching up with family type."

Ever since Raven left, there had been only a few interactions between them, usually when Raven needed some sort of favor that Qrow usually said " _fuck you_ " to.

"What is it this time? Money trouble? Boy trouble? Girl trouble? Problems with your people?"

Raven's eye twitched and Qrow smiled in satisfaction.

"They're your people too, Qrow. The Branwen Gang raised us more than mom ever did."

"So it is your people that's the issue." Qrow leaned back in his seat. He lifted his flask to his lips.

"No," answered Raven. "I got into... a complication."

"Complication?"

"I was put into the hospital. Medical bills, y'know. The usual shit."

"Of course you got into a fight," Qrow sighed.

"It was some drunk girl. I didn't start anything."

"Sure."

"I'm telling the truth."

Qrow choked. He stopped himself from laughing. "You? Telling the truth? Unheard of."

"Qrow," she warned.

"Raven."

She stayed silent for a second. She then scoffed. "They called you. The hospital. You damn well already know that I was hurt, and you didn't even come to visit. You didn't even want to listen. You hung up."

"What?" Qrow leaned forward, raising a brow at her.

"Don't play dumb. The least you could do is be real with me."

"Rae, I have no idea what you're—" Then it all came back. That day in Junior's club. He looked down, realization all over his face. "Shit."

He stood up and started walking away without another word.

"Hey!" Raven yelled.

He ignored her and left the café.

___

"Weiss! Blake!" Ruby screamed at the top of her lungs when she spotted them.

Weiss hissed in reply, "Oh, my god, shut up. It's only been an hour since we last saw each other."

Blake leaned against her locker, her hands behind her head.

Yang came up behind her sister, her usual big grin on her face. "What's up, bitches?"

"Why are you in such a good mood?" Blake asked the youngest girl in the friend group.

Yang added, "Yeah, didn't you just have English, your least favorite class of all time?"

"The dance is coming up," Ruby announced, "so I was thinking we could all go out shopping after school?"

"I would have to ask my father," Weiss murmured, her sassy attitude immediately changing. She placed a hand on her hip and pondered how she would gain his permission.

"Just say you have after school activities," Blake proposed.

Weiss stared at Blake for a moment. "I seriously wonder how you know so much about lying about your whereabouts."

"I use to sneak out all the time," Blake deadpanned, her face not showing a single hint of a lie. "Ran away a few times."

"Oh," Weiss stuttered. "That was a lot of information."

"Okay then... uh, guess we'll all meet here at the end of the day!" Ruby interrupted, waving her hands in the air. She jumped up and down a bit.

Weiss nodded and took out her scroll. She began walking down the hallway. She put the scroll to her ear after pressing a contact labeled 'Klein.'

_"Ms. Schnee?"_

"Yes. Hello, Klein."

" _It's the middle of the school day, is something wrong?"_

"No, nothing's wrong. I just wanted to ask you if you could tell father I'll be returning home later than usual."

" _May I ask why?"_

"After school activities."

Klein paused. He then said, " _The real reason?"_

Weiss sighed. "Going shopping with friends."

 _"Alright, that's fine. It's good you're making friends for once_."

"Hey!"

" _I'm kidding!_ " laughed Klein. " _I'll let him know. Be safe, Ms. Schnee."_

"Of course," replied Weiss. Then the call ended. She let out an exhale she didn't know she was keeping in. She put on a smile and went to her next class.

___

Oscar already despised going to Signal, but this was just ridiculous.

Sure, he had his Uncle Tai, but Ruby and Yang had left for Beacon.

It had been months into the school year, and Oscar was still peeved about it.

Now having no one to talk to in school was one thing, but guess what was worse?

Whitely _fucking_ Schnee.

The rich boy was now attending the school.

Ever since Weiss Schnee decided to attend Beacon Academy, the Schnees had only continued to locate to Vale.

Whitely was going to Signal only temporarily until Jaques Schnee would likely get sick of Vale and the low-class society living there, leave, then go back to the cold and cruel Atlas.

Whitley, like most spoiled white children, was a total asshole.

Lately, Oscar was his target. He poked fun at anything he could about the boy. He mainly liked calling him names.

Walking the halls of the school became a nightmare. Whenever Whitely passed by him, he always had something to say.

Oscar scanned the hallway. He couldn't see Whitely anywhere. He let a sigh of relief come out and—

"Hey, tranny!"

_Are you kidding me?_

He ignored it and kept walking. He knew it was Whitely. Even if he couldn't see him, he just knew.

Both Oscar and his mother were transgender. Ozpin was a public figure, and she was mid-transition when she became headmaster so it was known she was trans.

Oscar was nine when he transitioned. Of course, that became public knowledge as well before he was ready to come out. Also, many of his peers in Signal knew him before the transition so it wasn't like he could hide it from them.

Whitely took a few steps forward and was now next to Oscar. "Hey, I'm talking to you."

Oscar made a noise of acknowledgment. He kept his eyes forward.

"So, faggot, do you get it from your mother?"

Oscar stopped dead in his tracks. He swore his eye actually twitched when he heard those words.

He swiveled around and Whitely had a grin on his face.

"What did you just say?" Oscar snapped.

"You heard me," the Schnee said.

He grabbed Whitely by his shirt. Oscar was shorter than him, so he pulled him down to his level.

"If you _ever_ speak about my mother again, I will make sure you eat out of a straw for the rest of your life."

Now that made him go silent. Whitely had no comebacks, only a shocked expression.

Oscar let go of him and walked away. He couldn't help but smile a bit.

___

Right when the school day ended, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang bolted out of Beacon.

They went to a mall. Weiss had spotted a store filled with dresses, and she dragged the other three girls inside it.

Weiss immediately went to the other side of the store with the blue and white dresses. It was clear she went here often.

Ruby and Yang looked at a few dresses. Ruby seemed unsatisfied with the outfits in the store, while her older sister looked much happier with the many options.

Yang soon separated from Ruby and Blake and left to find other dresses.

"How may I help you girls?" a woman working there asked.

"Oh, we're just looking around for now," Ruby answered, a gleeful smile on her face. Blake nodded in agreement.

They continued to look around the store. Blake let the tips of her fingers run across the fabric of the dresses. She saw a dark purple dress and walked towards it.

She lied the dress on her chest while still holding onto the clothing hanger. She looked into a mirror to see how it would look.

"That's a very expensive dress."

Blake whirled around and there that woman was again.

"Oh, yeah. I know," she murmured in response.

She put the dress back. She went to the jewelry section. There was a pair of earrings that caught her eye. The second she picked it up, she heard the woman speak again.

"Those are very nice," she said.

Blake turned around. "What is your problem?"

"Pardon?" the woman replied in her most innocent voice.

"You've been following me this whole time," Blake explained, her patience wearing thin. "If you haven't noticed, there are other customers who actually need your assistance."

She pointed at the long line of customers at the cashier. One worker was helping these people while there were other checkout lanes empty because no other worker was helping out.

"Oh, well—" the woman stuttered.

"What's the problem here?" Weiss asked when she saw the situation. Yang and Ruby stood behind her, confused looks on their faces.

Blake stated, "She's been following me because I'm a Faunus."

"That is not—" the worker tried to say only to get cut off.

"We're leaving then," Weiss announced.

"Yeah, fuck this place," Ruby said.

Yang pointed a finger in the woman's face. "And _fuck you_ specifically."

Once they were out of the store, Blake turned to the girls. "Thank you," she whispered.

"It was the least we could do," Weiss said.

"Yeah, trust me." Yang chuckled, "We could've made that lady's life way worse."

Blake giggled softly. "Still, thanks. That's happened a lot to me and no one, besides my parents, have stood up for me like that."

"Wait, this happens often?" Ruby asked, leaning forward in curiosity.

"Yeah. It's a Faunus thing."

Yang blinked. "It's not a Faunus thing, it's a racist thing."

Blake shrugged.

"Okay, how about this; I'll pay for whatever you want," Weiss proposed. She pulled out a credit card.

Blake's frown formed a small smile.

After about an hour, the group of girls had a few bags in their hands while they were walking out of the mall.

"Shit," Weiss muttered when she saw the time.

"What?" Ruby inquired.

"My father will be suspicious if I arrive late."

"But you told him you would be coming home later," Ruby responded.

"Yes, but no after school activity lasts this long," Weiss told her. "I need to get home fast."

"Okay. Want us to bring you home first?" Ruby asked.

"My father would ask many questions if he found out a group of girls he doesn't know brought me home in a car like this."

"Excuse me?" Yang gasped in an overdramatic voice when she overheard the conversation.

"No offense," Weiss added. "Anyway, if my father sees these bags too—" she laughed nervously— "it would be the end of me. I'll have Klein pick me up and sneak me back into the manor."

"That... wow," Ruby whispered.

Weiss raised a brow at her. "What is it?"

"That's a very unhealthy relationship you have with your father," Blake said.

Weiss realized just how quiet it was in the car when she was explaining her plan.

"I'm going to call Klein," Weiss changed the subject quickly. She took out her scroll and put it to her ear. She got out of the car and stood to the side.

Ruby, Yang, and Blake all exchanged looks of worry.

___

Weiss got picked up by Klein, and the sisters dropped off Blake at her house.

When Yang and Ruby arrived at the Xiao Long-Rose household, they found Tai sitting at the table in the kitchen, his fingers laced together. Qrow stood behind him, anger all over his face.

"Uh, dad? Uncle Qrow? What's going on?" Ruby asked. There was a nervous look on her face.

Yang stood behind her. She gulped when she saw smoke practically coming out of Qrow's ears.

Tai put on a smile. "We need to talk to Yang. Can you give us a moment please?"

"Yeah, sure," she stuttered in response. She walked up the stairs, the creaking of the staircase being the only noise in the home.

Tai looked back at Yang. "You said you stopped looking."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Qrow took control of the conversation. He leaned forward and glared into Yang's soul. "You were going to go find Raven, weren't you? I know when you answered my scroll yesterday, you found out she was in the hospital."

"Still don't know what you're talking about." Yang kept her eyes glued to the ground.

Qrow was visibly having difficulty keeping his composure. "I'm not in the mood, Yang. Answer the damn question."

She looked at her father and uncle and shouted, "Don't I have the right to meet her?"

Tai told her, his voice still low and calm unlike the other two, "You're going to get yourself hurt."

"What do you know? She left right after I was born!"

"You lied, Yang," Qrow said. "You chose to keep that call to yourself. You looked up the directions to the Vale hospital on your computer. You were going to leave today."

Yang looked shocked. She waved her hands in the air, and she yelled, "You went through my stuff? My _computer_?"

"Yes. Yes, we did," Tai responded for his brother-in-law. "Thank the gods your uncle told me what was going on."

Yang kept her attention on Qrow. "You had no right to tell him about this."

"I had every fuckin' right. You keep pulling this shit and keep getting yourself hurt."

"Maybe I wouldn't be getting hurt all the time if you just let me meet my mom!"

"She's not your mother," Qrow growled. "When will you understand that?"

"I never had a mom! Summer is _dead_ —"

Tai flinched at that. Qrow turned his head to the side for a moment.

"— and Raven left! I never got the chance to see what that was like, to have a mom!" Tears began to form around her purple eyes. "Why do you blame me for wanting that so badly?"

Qrow slammed his hands on the table. "Because Raven left for a goddamn reason. She didn't want you—"

" _Qrow!_ " Tai raised his voice and stood up.

Qrow ignored him and continued. "— she didn't want me, she didn't want your father, she didn't want this life!"

He walked towards his eldest niece. "But you're too fucking stupid to see it," he spat.

Yang was speechless. Her lips were parted as if she wanted to say something, but nothing came out.

Tai put his hand on Qrow's chest and backed him away from Yang. He mumbled a lecture to Qrow as he put him on the other side of the room.

"I'm almost an adult!" Yang suddenly retorted.

Qrow whirled right back around. "No, you're not."

"I'm seventeen!"

"And?"

"And that means I'm a year away from officially being an adult!"

"That doesn't mean shit."

"It means I can leave whenever I want."

Qrow laughed. "Go ahead, try it. I could drop your ass in half a second."

"Fine!"

Yang turned around and started marching towards the door.

She heard loud, furious footsteps coming her way. She looked over her shoulder, and she backed away when she saw Qrow reaching for her.

She hit a wall. She heard glass shatter. She looked down and the picture of Summer, Tai, Raven, and Qrow in their military uniforms lied on the ground.

"Where are you planning on going?" Qrow snarled. Yang tried to throw a punch only for him to catch it easily. "Going to the hospital would be a waste of time. Raven isn't there anymore. Even if she was, she wouldn't give you the time of day."

Tai got in between Qrow and Yang before anything could get any more aggressive. "The both of you, take a walk," he told them.

Yang stormed up the stairs as quickly as she could. They heard the loud slam of her and Ruby's shared bedroom door.

Tai turned to Qrow. "What the hell was that?"

"The truth," he simply answered.

"Go cool down," Taiyang told him.

Qrow grabbed his coat and started going for the exit.

"Do me a favor," he heard Tai say. He turned around.

He said, "Go anywhere but a bar. It'll piss Yang off more if you come home in the middle of the night drunk."

"Yeah, whatever," mumbled Qrow. He rolled his eyes and left the house.

___

_Young Raven and Qrow were sneaking out of their bedroom window one night._

_“This is dumb,” Raven hissed as she landed on the ground._

_“Shut up,” Qrow muttered._

_“Do you even know where he is?” she asked in a whisper._

_“He’s probably somewhere around here.”_

_“That’s very helpful.”_

_He told her again, “Shut up.”_

_They began walking on the sidewalk of the dark street. Qrow could feel the cold breeze of the wind on his skin._

_“It’s cold,” he stuttered through his teeth._

_“Don’t care.” Despite her words, she took a jacket out of her backpack and put it around his shoulders._

_“I thought you said—”_

_Raven snarled, “Keep walking.”_

_They walked for hours. They looked through every alleyway, every bar, every store, every parking lot, everything. Nothing._

_“No one here looks like us,” Raven said._

_“We’ll keep looking.”_

_Raven sighed heavily. “Let’s go home.”_

_“No.”_

_“Qrow.”_

_“I’m not leaving.”_

_“It’s cold and dark.”_

_“I’m not leaving, Rae.”_

_“We need to get back before mom wakes up.”_

_Qrow kept his mouth shut. He thought about it. In the end, he mumbled, “Fine.”_

_Raven took his hand in her own. They began walking back to their apartment. Qrow rested his head against her shoulder._

_She heard him sniffle and pout. She put a hand around him and rubbed his back._

___ 

Ozpin didn't expect to find Qrow at her doorstep when she opened it.

"Hello," she greeted.

"Hey." 

She let him inside. He walked towards the kitchen where Oscar was at the kitchen table, doing his homework.

"Would you like something to eat or drink?" Oz asked.

"Coffee, please."

Ozpin began to pour black coffee into a mug. It was very obvious that something was bothering Qrow.

"What has you so riled up?"

"Yang," Qrow grumbled. "She was planning on finding Raven today."

Ozpin paused. She tilted her head. "Did she?"

"No, thankfully. No matter how much Tai and I tell her it's a stupid idea to go looking for her, she doesn't listen."

Ozpin handed the coffee to Qrow and walked him to the living room. They sat down.

"Start from the beginning, Qrow," Oz said.

After a long explanation of the events that had occurred less than an hour ago, Ozpin understood the situation.

"Alright." She turned to the man next to her. "Let me ask you this; why is she in the wrong?"

Qrow narrowed his eyes at her, wondering if this was a test. When he realized it wasn't, he answered. "She's refusing to listen to common sense. She's being dumb and idiotic."

"And why are you in the wrong?"

Qrow was taken aback. "What?"

"Why are you in the wrong?" she repeated the question.

"I don't understand what you mean..."

"You said a few hurtful things. Do you not think you were a bit harsh on Yang?"

"Someone has to keep her in her place, teach her the hard truth."

"Hmm," Ozpin nodded. "And why do you believe it's your responsibility to do so?

He grunted, "I was closer to Raven. I know how she works, how she thinks. She could break Yang in a second with only words."

"Did you not do the exact same thing?"

Qrow stared at the headmaster. "It was necessary."

"How? How was it necessary? Wouldn't this make her want to rebel against you and Taiyang more? Would this not make Yang want to search for her mother more?"

"I..." Qrow mumbled. "I didn't think of that."

"But—" he went back to the first topic of the conversation— "finding Raven is only going to hurt her. She thinks she's going to get the mother she never had."

"Is that what she thinks?"

"Probably." He leaned against the couch and looked up at the ceiling.

"Or perhaps she wants answers as to why Raven left her," Ozpin explained. "Knowing someone you don't know left you before you could walk or talk takes a toll on people. Did it not affect you?"

"Raven leaving? Of course."

"No, your father."

Qrow's head snapped back to Ozpin. "My father?"

"You told me a long time ago you and Raven went looking for your father when you were younger, yes?"

"Well, yeah—"

"Why did you do that?"

Qrow stayed silent.

Ozpin told him firmly, "See? You both had the same reasons."

"We never found him, Oz. And it hurt like a bitch afterward," muttered Qrow, tiredness in his voice. "I don't want that happening to Yang."

"Yes, but you see why she wants to look for her mother so desperately now."

"I'm confused. What are you trying to tell me?"

"Apologize to Yang. Make her understand why you are being so hard on her."

Qrow huffed. "She's a stubborn one. She won't listen even if I do that."

"Well-" Ozpin was interrupted by her scroll. She looked at the screen. "Signal is calling me. Give me a moment."

She stood up and walked into a hallway nearby. A few minutes passed and the call ended. Ozpin walked to the kitchen and stood in the door frame.

"Oscar," she said.

The boy paused his work and turned to her. "Yeah?"

"Did you get into a fight at school?"

Qrow choked on his coffee. "Wait, what?"

"I didn't fight anyone," Oscar explained. "I _threatened_ someone. There's a difference."

"You _what?_ " Ozpin shrieked.

"Hell yeah! Attaboy!" Qrow shouted despite Ozpin's furious glare on him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder; Faunus don’t have animal features in this AU but they still exist. The ancestors of Faunus were a part of a culture that was judged by racists. They basically faced a mixture of what Native-Americans and black people faced.


	8. Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacques Schnee enters the fray when a meeting between him, Ozpin, and Signal’s headmaster is set. 
> 
> Ruby, Weiss, and Yang are brought to a protest by Blake and a friend of her’s.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any spelling or grammar mistakes

Breakfast was incredibly awkward the next morning. 

When Yang had woken up, the look on her face said it all; she was still pissed. 

Ruby tried talking to her, but she immediately got ignored. Yang had simply just walked past her.

After getting dressed, they went downstairs to the kitchen. Tai had placed the bowls of cereal on the table. He was grabbing the milk and pouring it into their bowls. He looked up and saw his daughters.

"Morning!" he said, a hesitant smile on his face.

Yang's lilac eyes had no hint of joy in them. She slumped into her chair and stared down at her breakfast.

Her fingertips touched her spoon, but she wasn't eating. She played with the spoon and fidgeted with her hands and hair, but that was it.

Tai stared at his daughter. He frowned.

Ruby noticed. She tried to take control of the conversation. "Uh, Dad, where's Uncle Qrow?"

Yang's nose scrunched up in annoyance at the mention of the name.

Tai replied, "He texted me last night and said he's with Ozpin right now."

Ruby nodded.

Her scroll chimed. She looked down at the screen.

**_Blake_ ** _: I'm going to a protest later ✌️ wanna join?_

Ruby nudged her sister and showed the text to her. 

Yang squinted and stared at the screen for a few seconds. She turned to Ruby and raised a brow.

"What?" Tai asked.

"Blake says she's going to some sort of protest after school, can we go?" Ruby asked, her usual smile plastered all over her face.

Tai leaned forward. "A protest?"

Ruby nodded.

"Which protest?"

"Uh," Ruby stuttered. She looked at the screen again. "Doesn't say. I can ask her."

She began typing. 

**_Ruby_ ** _: hey, which protest?_

**_Blake_ ** _: FLM_

**_Ruby_ ** _: flm??_

**_Blake_ ** _: Faunus Lives Matter_

**_Ruby_ ** _: ohhh_

She looked back up at her father. "She says it's the Faunus Lives Matter ones."

"Oh, those." Tai munched on his cereal. "They're all over the news nowadays."

"Sooo, can we go?" 

"No."

"What? Why?" Ruby asked.

"They get violent."

"The protesters aren't violent," Yang sternly said.

Ruby's eyes widened for a second. This was the first thing her sister had said all morning.

Tai corrected himself, "Yes, I agree, but I'm talking about the police. They're the ones escalating things—" he turned to Ruby— "and I don't want you to get hurt."

"I won't get hurt," Ruby told him. "Yang will be there to protect me as always." She smiled at her sister.

The ends of Yang's lips slightly curved into a smile for a moment. 

"Even if I let you go, Yang wouldn't be going," Tai explained.

"What?" Yang shrieked.

"I've decided that you're grounded."

"Grounded? That's an actual joke," she replied.

"No, after last night..." he murmured, trying to figure out how to word his next sentence. 

Yang narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms. "What about last night?"

Tai sighed, "You're stressed. It would be better for you to stay home after school—"

Yang rolled her eyes. 

"—so I can keep an eye on you."

Yang blinked. "Keep an eye on me? Do you think I'm gonna try something? Find Raven perhaps?"

Ruby shrunk in her seat. She gulped as the two argued.

"I'm just worried about you."

"Yeah, locking me in the house really shows that."

"No, I'm not— I'm not locking you anywhere. I care about you, you know that—"

"Care about me? Sure, you do."

"I'm your father. Of course, I do!"

"If you cared, you'd let me make my own choices."

"I'm trying to keep you from making the wrong choices."

"Like talking to Raven?"

"Yes! That's what caused this. You're going to get—"

"—myself hurt. Blah blah. Gods, you sound just like Qrow."

"And Qrow is right."

"Uh-huh, is he right about drinking too? He seems to do that a lot and you don't say shit."

"Yang!"

"What?"

"That has nothing to do with this."

"Going out with friends has nothing to do with Raven either!"

"How would I even know you're actually going to the protest and not wandering off to find your mother?"

"You don't, but the least you could do is trust me for once."

Tai took a deep breath. He rested his face in his hands. He looked at the two girls. "I'm sorry, but the answer is no."

Yang scoffed and stormed upstairs. Ruby winced when she heard the harsh sound the stomps made. 

When Ruby went upstairs, Yang went back to not talking. Even after twenty minutes, when they were about to leave the house and catch the bus, Yang hadn't spoken a word.

When they got on the bus, Ruby decided to leave Yang alone. She didn't want to bother her, and she thought she'd appreciate it.

She sat next to Weiss. She asked, a smirk on her face, "Were all your limos being used?"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Klein was unavailable. He's picking up Winter from the airport."

"Your sister?"

"Yes," she confirmed. Weiss genuinely looked excited— something Ruby hadn't seen often. "I can't wait for her to come! She said she has an apartment she'll be staying in, and it would be nice to get out of the manor now and then."

"That's cool," Ruby smiled. 

Weiss saw Yang in the corner of her eye. She looked back at the younger girl. "What about your sister?"

Ruby looked back at her sister. She leaned forward and whispered, "She and Dad and Uncle Qrow got into an argument. I didn't see it, I just heard a lot of yelling and I think some fighting."

"Physical fighting?" Weiss inquired, her eyes wide, worry all over her face. "Are you okay? Is Yang okay?" She placed her hand over Ruby's.

"Yeah, we're fine— wait..." Ruby realized. She looked at the white-haired girl. "Why would you think Dad or Uncle Qrow would hurt us?"

Weiss stammered, "I..." She took a deep breath and leaned back. "I'm just making sure you're alright.” 

Ruby stared at her. She nodded, though she didn’t exactly understand. 

Weiss turned away and looked out the window. A memory filled with yelling and curses flashed in her mind. A shiver went down her spine.

Last night had been a nightmare in the Schnee Manor.

___

  
  


_Every night, most of the Schnee family had dinner at the dinner table. It was mandatory, no excuses. A minute late and Weiss would get a scolding._

_Jacques sat at the end of the table. Weiss and Whitely sat across each other. As usual, Willow wasn’t there._

_After Jacques complained about his difficult day of trying to control the SDC, he allowed Whitely to speak about his day. He mentioned a small boy with freckles, hazel eyes, and skin the color of caramel._

_Weiss quickly realized who he was talking about before he even said his full name. She’d remembered him from the day she, the girls, Sun, and Neptune went around town, acting like detectives. Little Oscar Pine, nervous and hiding behind his two cousins. Weiss softly smiled. She’d probably be anxious too if she was stuck with a bunch of rowdy teenagers._

_“That brat did what?” Jacques said, loud and angry._

_Weiss snapped out of her thoughts and looked to her father._

_He was fuming, his face all twisted with rage._

_Whitely looked satisfied, but a bit scared at the reaction._

_“I’m calling the school,” he had told them. He rose from his seat and called for Klein to call the number of Signal Academy._

_Weiss could hear him yelling into his scroll. Whitely looked surprised as he looked in the direction of the angry screaming._

_A meeting was set. Ozpin and Jacques would go to Signal and speak with the headmaster about the situation._

_Weiss hoped Oscar would be alright._

___

Oscar entered the kitchen. He hid half his face in his orange hoodie. His vision was a bit blurry. The bright lights above shined in his eyes and he squinted as he tried to make his way toward the pantry.

He grabbed a cereal box, a bowl, and a spoon. He turned around and started walking toward the table. He paused when he saw a tall figure sitting in front of him.

Qrow pursed his lips as he sipped his black coffee. “You eat cereal dry? No milk? Seriously?” 

Oscar stared at him. He opened his mouth to speak but couldn’t form words. He tried again. “What… Why are you here still? Where’s mom?”

“She’s at work. Early meeting,” he answered. “She put me in charge of making sure you go to school.”

“I can take care of myself,” Oscar sternly told him. He put a spoonful of cereal in his mouth.

“Sure, kiddo,” Qrow said. “So—” he leaned forward— “who’d you get into a fight with?”

Oscar raised a brow at him. Once he realized he was legitimately curious, he answered him. “Whitely Schnee.”

Qrow let out a laugh. “Good for you.”

Oscar explained, “Apparently Jacques Schnee called the school, complaining and yelling. Now Mom has to go to a meeting with the headmaster after school.” He paused, thought for a moment. “I would’ve punched Whitely if we weren’t on school grounds.”

Qrow grinned.

Oscar stared at him. “Aren’t you supposed to tell me I shouldn’t say that? You’re the adult here.”

Qrow sipped his coffee. He shrugged. “And?”

Oscar chuckled. He stood up and went to pack his lunch for the day. As he did so, he asked Qrow, “So what happened last night?”

“Hm?”

“Mom said you seemed bothered. You and she talked on the couch.”

“Ah,” he murmured. _Smart kid_ , he thought. “Adult stuff. Nothing serious though.”

“Liar,” retorted Oscar. 

He narrowed his eyes at the child. “What?”

Oscar waved his scroll in his face. “Ruby texted me last night about it.”

“Of course she did,” Qrow sighed. “Hey, so what’s it like only having fifteen and seventeen-year-olds for friends?” 

“First; it’s horrible, but it’s better than the kids my age at school,” Oscar stated. “Second; don’t change the subject.” He pointed a finger at him.

Qrow, amused, scoffed. “Well, if you must know, Yang was looking for her mother, and Tai and I found out about it. We all fought— Yang and I fought. It got heated. Our family has issues, it’s hard shit.”

Oscar pointed at a jar on the counter. It had quarters and lien bills in it. 

“What?” Qrow asked.

“Swear jar,” Oscar said. “Pay up.”

Qrow let out a laugh. He gave in and put a bill in. He turned back to the boy. “Anyway, I’m not sure what to do. She’s pissed at me, and Tai and Oz both think I went too far. Your mom says I should talk to her.”

“You know my mom, she’s always right,” Oscar told him. 

Qrow nodded in agreement. “Yeah, she is.”

Oscar checked his scroll. He rushed out of his seat. “The bus is gonna be here in five minutes. I’m going to get ready!” he quickly said as he sped off to his room. 

Qrow sat alone in the kitchen, drinking his coffee.

___

Ozpin, tired and exhausted, walked toward the elevator. She pressed the button and waited. Dark circles hid under her eyes. Her eyes were half shut. Her throat was dry, she hadn’t been able to grab a snack or cup of hot chocolate that morning. She’d have to ask Glynda to make her one later. 

The doors opened, and her eyes widened. Salem stood there.

She tried to keep her reaction under control. She took a deep breath and stepped into the elevator. She could feel Salem’s cold stare.

“No _‘hello’_? No ‘ _good morning’_?” Salem sneered, her voice smug. 

Ozpin was too goddamn tired for this. She turned her head to face Salem. She grumbled, “Hello, Satan.”

The doors opened before Salem could say anything. Oz marched out. She kept her eyes forward, didn’t dare look back. 

Salem stared in shock. She didn’t move. She kept her eyes locked on Oz until the elevator doors closed shut and she was out of view. She sighed.

___

Today, in Oobleck’s class, the girls could finally just relax, sit back and talk. They had finished the papers Doctor Oobleck handed out to them before everyone else, thanks to Weiss and Blake.

“Hey,” Blake said to Ruby. “You didn't reply to my text this morning. Are you going to come?”

Memories of that morning’s argument and Yang’s refusal to speak flooded Ruby’s mind. She shook her head and forced on a smile. “I can’t. My dad won’t let me.”

“Shit,” Blake muttered sorrowfully. “How about you, Yang? Weiss?”

“Can’t,” Yang simply replied. 

Weiss asked, “What are you talking about? Where are you going?”

“Protest,” Blake answered. “I already know which sign I’m going to bring, my ‘defund the police’ one.” She laughed, “Watching cops’ reactions to seeing it is honestly what I live for.”

“What do you mean _‘defund the police’_?” Weiss asked. 

“Too much money is put into it. Other things, like school and hospitals, need it way more,” Blake explained. She then beamed when an idea entered her head. “I should put ‘oink oink’ on the sign too. That’s gonna piss the pigs off.”

“ _‘Pigs’_? Isn’t that a bit much?” Weiss said. 

Blake stopped smiling. She blinked at the girl across from her. “What do you mean?”

“The police aren’t doing anything—”

“They’re gunning down innocent Faunus in the streets for no reason.”

“And that’s horrible! I meant that not all of them are bad.”

“They’re putting themselves in a system made to oppress Faunus. It’s a racist system, and if they continue to be a part of it, that makes them racist too.”

“But there are good cops, Blake.”

“Yes, and if they’re so good, they’ll quit their job and join the movement. What is so hard to understand?”

“I just don't understand why there are such extreme things said about cops.”

“As I said, they’re racist by associating themselves with a racist system.”

“My sister is a detective. She’s not racist.”

“She’s an Atlesian cop. She’s a part of the Atlas Police Department. That makes it _worse_. Atlas, by far, is the most racist place in the world. They enslave Faunus there.”

“What is happening to the Faunus is disgusting, I get that and I’m glad you taught me that, but how are cops all bad?”

Blake took a deep breath. She took out her scroll. “I’m going to show you something.” She pulled up an article. 

Weiss looked at the article. It was titled _‘Faunus Mine Workers Die In Accident_.’ There was a picture of a man and a woman with gray eyes, tan skin, and brown hair. 

“They’re the parents of a friend of mine, Illia. They lived in Mantle. The only way to survive in a place like that while being a Faunus was to work for the SDC. They were forced into labor and barely got paid. When they died, Illia showed the police proof that the SDC was enslaving people, even branding them. They refused to look into it.”

Weiss forgot to breathe for a moment. She inhaled and exhaled. 

Blake looked at her. “Now do you understand? The system is racist. Not all cops are bad, but they are bastards. It needs to be defunded.”

Weiss sighed. “I think… I think I’m starting to understand.” 

For the rest of the class, she couldn’t get Winter out of her mind. 

___

It was now the end of the school day. 

Ozpin entered the office of the Signal headmaster. The door was wide open, but she gave a soft knock to let the headmaster know she was there.

A small, elder woman spun around in her chair. She wore goggle-like prosthetic eyes. She yelled with glee, “Oz!”

Ozpin stepped around the desk and walked to Maria. They exchanged a hug. 

“Oh, it’s been so long,” Maria said. “You never come to visit. What’s up with that?”

“I’ve been busy. Very, _very_ busy,” Oz responded. She let go of the woman. Before she could stand up straight, Maria cupped her face.

“Look at you,” she said softly. “All grown up.”

Ozpin smiled, her eyes shimmering. Maria removed her hands, and Oz stood back. She took a seat in front of Maria’s desk. Army medals were displayed on the wall. 

“Let’s make this quick and easy, shall we?” a voice announced. 

Maria and Ozpin turned to see that Jacques Schnee had arrived. He had smelled like money, it was ridiculous. His pants and coat were pure white— not a single stain could be seen— his button-up shirt was a light blue, his clip-on tie was white and light gray with a polka dot pattern printed on it, and there was a red handkerchief in his breast pocket. 

He looked down at the white-haired woman. “Hello, Ozpin.”

“Mr. Schnee,” Ozpin greeted.

Maria gestured to the other seat in her office. “Sit, we have much to talk about.”

“Well,” Jacques said, “clearly my son didn’t do anything wrong. That Pine girl threatened his life.”

“My son is a _boy_ and _his_ name is Oscar,” Ozpin growled through her teeth. 

“Whatever helps you sleep at night, Professor,” retorted Jacques. 

Oz rolled her eyes. “I don’t condone how my son responded to the situation, but the truth of the matter is your son said slurs and insulted him.”

“He did no such thing,” Schnee said, confident as ever.

“There are witnesses,” Maria stated. 

He peered at her with his cold eyes. He told her, “Well I certainly didn’t teach him that. It must have been this ghetto, miserable school.” 

Maria blinked. “Excuse me?”

“It’s filled with confused, troublesome children and teachers who don’t know what they’re doing.”

“Mr. Schnee, _if_ any of the students or staff influenced your son into repeating those words, I’ll speak to them and make sure they know it’s inappropriate and insensitive,” Maria said. “However, I fear this comes from home issues and not my school.”

Jacques groaned. “Is this therapy, Professor Calavera? Can we just get to the end?”

Maria glared at him for a moment. She explained, “Both Whitely and Oscar will have detention tomorrow after school.”

“Seems fair,” Ozpin said.

“Great, may I leave now?” Schnee asked impatiently. 

Maria nodded.

He left the office. On his way out, he mumbled, “Absolutely outrageous.”

If Maria could roll her eyes, she would have. She turned to Oz. “So your boy is off threatening white boys? I’m proud to be his grandmother.”

“You’re not his grandmother, Maria,” Oz laughed.

“Well I can dream!” she declared, pointing a finger in the air. “Anyway,” she said, “are you dating again yet?”

Ozpin almost choked on air. She wasn’t expecting that question. “I’m…” she stuttered. “No, I’m not. Though speaking of relationships—”

Maria gasped with joy.

“— Salem—”

Her smile fell, and her face was covered in disgust. “Are you back together? Ozpin, I swear, if you are, I will smack you upside the head. Her _loca_ friend blinded me for the brothers' sake.”

“No. _Gods_ , no,” Ozpin said. She took a deep breath. “Salem… She’s back in my life.”

“Why? How?” Maria asked.

“She somehow befriended Leo, and he got her a temporary job at Beacon. I had no idea it was her Leo was telling me about, and it’s not like I could kick her out after I did find out.” Oz sounded so helpless. “She was a lawyer, she knows I have no real legal reason to kick her out, and she has many contacts everywhere.”

“So what are you going to do then?” 

Oz sighed. She leaned back in her seat. “I haven’t the faintest idea.”

Maria placed her frail hand over Ozpin’s. “You’ll figure it out, I know you will. You always do.”

Oz laced her fingers with Maria’s and smiled.

___

_Signal staff found a dirty, filthy child on school grounds. Ozpin, twelve-years-old, was trying to snatch food. She hadn’t eaten in days._

_At first, she fought back when a teacher grabbed her. One of them offered her a piece of bread. She hesitated, but she took it._

_The teachers escorted her to the headmaster’s office. Maria Calavera was a woman with black hair and silver eyes._

_Ozpin was small, tiny compared to her. Her white hair was slowly growing out, all tangled and big. Her skin almost shined with how pale it was. She held a small cane in her hand. It was retracted. Dirt almost covered it completely, it’s carefully imprinted patterns could barely be seen because of it. She wore a large, raggedy green sweater. The sweater went down to her knees. With it, she wore black shorts she in no way would be able to survive the winter in. Finally, she had black, circular glasses that almost fell off her nose._

_Maria knelt. “Now what are you doing all by yourself, young man?”_

_Ozpin winced. Being called a male always made her uncomfortable since she could first understand words._

_“You don’t like being called that, do you?” Maria asked._

_Oz shook her head._

_“Alright, what would you prefer?”_

_She shrugged._

_“Ok, we’ll figure it out.” Professor Calavera placed a hand on Oz’s small one. “Now what’s your name?”_

_____

**_Blake_ ** _: anyone change their mind and wanna go to the protest with me?_

**_Weiss_ ** _: my sister doesn’t want me to come over until she’s done unpacking, so I think I’ll be able to go._

**_Yang_ ** _: yeah I’ll go too_

**_Ruby_ ** _: yang, you’re grounded tho_

**_Yang_ ** _: I’m staying in the dorms today. Dad can’t keep me at home if I’m not there to begin with._

**_Blake_ ** _: ok, I’m with a friend at the game store we always go to. Meet me here_

**_Ruby_ ** _: k_

**_Weiss_ ** _: alright_

**_Yang_ ** _: on my way_

___ 

Yang put on her green camouflage pants, yellow crop top, and a black leather jacket. She tied her large mane into a ponytail. She wore black gloves and a yellow mask that Blake had recommended she wear. 

She exited her dorm. She went down the hallway, scurried down the stairs, and got to the first floor. She got outside. She walked past the many large windows of the cafeteria. She curved the corner and froze.

Ozpin stood there, her hands resting on her cane. She raised an eyebrow at her niece. 

Yang pointed finger guns at her. “Ay, what’s up, Auntie Oz?”

Ozpin kept a blank expression. “Where are you going, Ms. Xiao Long?”

Yang grimaced at the use of her last name, something Oz only did during school hours. 

“I know your father grounded you, so don’t even attempt to lie to me,” Oz told her. “He told me you’d try to go to a protest.”

“Yeah,” Yang sighed. She scratched the back of her head. “Can you let this slide then, just this once?” She put her puppy eyes on. They always worked when she was younger.

Ozpin stared at her. After a few seconds, she dropped the act. With a sigh, she nodded. “Only this once.”

Yang jumped on Ozpin and wrapped her arms around her. Thrilled, she whispered, “Thanks.”

“Just don’t tell your father,” Oz said.

Yang shook her head up and down. She bolted out of there and into the city.

___

When Yang arrived in front of the game store, she saw Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and a girl she had never seen before there. Ruby and Weiss had arrived only a few seconds before Yang.

The random girl was older— nineteen-years-old, two whole years older than most of the group— around long enough to know everything there was to know about Faunus discrimination.

She had gray eyes, dark spots scattered around her body, and brown hair. It was tied back into a ponytail, the end curled. She wore blue jeans and a black jacket with a gray tank top underneath. A rainbow mask was pulled down, resting on her chest.

Blake greeted, “Hey!”

“Sup, bitches?” Yang yelled, her arms in the air. She walked over to Blake— she held the same sign she had said she’d bring— and hugged her. 

The girl crossed her arms and looked her up and down. She made a face of curiosity. 

Blake closed her fist and pointed at her friend with her thumb. “Yang, Ruby, Weiss— Illia.” She looked at Illia and gestured to the three girls. “Illia— Yang, Ruby, and Weiss.”

“Schnee?” Illia quickly realized. She stared at the white-haired heiress.

Weiss stammered, “Uh, yeah. _Yes_. I am.”

“Going to a protest?” Illia asked. “A Schnee going to a protest for Faunus rights?”

“Yes,” Weiss said, sternly this time.

Illia looked at Blake. Blake smiled. Illia shrugged, “Okay then. Come on, ladies. Let’s go.”

They all followed her. Weiss took a moment to take a deep breath. She caught up with them and stood close to Ruby.

“Are you sure it’s a good idea for me, of all people, to be here?” she whispered to the younger girl.

Ruby stared at her, confused. “What do you mean?”

“I’m a _Schnee_.” She muttered the surname as if it were a curse word. “Illia recognized me in less than a minute. What if it happens again? The things people will say, or— gods forbid— _do_ to me.”

Ruby tilted her head at her. Her eyes widened as Weiss spoke. “Hey,” she said. She lifted the light blue mask tied around Weiss’ neck and placed it over her mouth and nose. “That’s what this is for. And if anyone tries anything, I’ll be here for you.”

Weiss sniffed at the words. She covered her eyes and wiped the small tears away.

“ _Awww_ ,” Ruby gasped.

“Shut up,” grumbled Weiss in return, her cheeks red.

They all walked together down the street. They began to hear chatter and yelling. Eventually, they stopped and found a sea of people gathered together. They were playing music with the instruments some had brought. They held their signs closely. They all laughed and joked together.

Illia, Blake, Yang, Weiss, and Ruby moved through the crowd. Though they bumped into some shoulders and arms, they were unnoticed. They moved to the front. The chanting had gotten louder. People raised their signs and waved them around in the faces of every cop that stood in front of the giant group.

“Faunus lives matter!”

“Defund the police!”

“Good cops quit!”

“Stop killing us!”

Weiss looked around herself. Every person there didn’t hesitate to yell in the cops’ faces. They screamed at them, and the line of police stayed stiff and still. 

Eventually, they began to shoot their rubber bullets, throw their tear gas. The crowd scattered and began running away.

“ _Fuck!”_ Yang yelped when a rubber bullet hit her in the thigh. She limped to the side of the road. Blake sprinted to her and dragged her to an empty alleyway. Yang winced.

Blake bent down and fell to her knees. She took off a backpack she had been wearing. Inside were a few bandages. She took them out and placed them over the wound. Blood seeped into the white bandages.

“Where are the others? Ruby. Where’s Ruby?” she asked when she realized they weren’t there.

“I…” stuttered Blake. “I don’t know.” She let go of the bandages. “Put pressure on that.” She took out her scroll.

**_Blake_ ** _: Where are you guys?_

**_Ruby_ ** _: I’m with Weiss. idk where we are_

**_Blake_ ** _: Ok. Head to my house._

**_Ruby_ ** _: Is my sis with you?_

**_Blake_ ** _: Yeah, she’s here. She got hurt._

**_Ruby_ ** _: she got hurt???????_

**_Ruby_ ** _: answer me_

**_Ruby_ ** _: Blake_

**_Blake_ ** _: she’ll be fine. Just meet us at my house.  
_

_**Ruby** : What about your friend?_

_**Blake** : She’s not with me. I’ll text her later. I’m sure she’s fine._   
  


_**Ruby** : ok, we’ll meet you at the house_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to those who have been patient with me! c:


	9. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang leave the protest. After, the gang is left with other problems to deal with involving family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s still October in this story btw

“Idiot,” Weiss mumbled when she saw Yang. 

Yang had been put— _dragged—_ on the couch. Her leg was stretched out and rested on a pillow. She held an ice pack on the wound on her thigh.

Ruby sat next to her, constantly checking up on her.

Blake and Illia were in the kitchen with Kali and Ghira. 

Kali embraced Illia. “Oh, it’s been so long!”

Illia laughed and hugged back. “Missed you too.”

“Should we call their parents?” Ghira asked Blake.

Blake laughed, “Heh, yeah, we can’t do that. They don’t know they went to a protest. Yang and Ruby’s dad told them to not go, and Weiss’ dad is… well…”

“A Schnee,” Illia finished the sentence.

“A _Schnee?”_ Kali whispered.

Illia nodded.

Blake quickly said, “She’s nothing like Jacques Schnee. She’s my friend, and she’s been judged enough, so _please_ , be nice.”

“Of course,” Kali told her. She clasped her hands together. “It’s the polite thing to do.”

“Excuse me?”

They all turned to the quiet voice.

Weiss stood in the doorway. She had her arms behind her back. “May I grab a water bottle, please?”

“Yes.” Kali searched for a bottle. When she found one, she handed it to Weiss. She smiled brightly, “Here you go, dear.”

Weiss thanked her. Before she could even leave the kitchen and drink the water, her scroll began to ring. She checked it. It was Winter.

“Oh!” she exclaimed. “I have to go meet my sister.”

“Need a ride?” Blake asked.

“No, I’ll just call Klein.” She went outside to answer the call.

“Who’s _‘Klein’_?” Illia asked.

Blake answered, “Her butler.”

“She has a butler?” Ghira said.

Blake nodded.

Weiss stood on the porch of the Belladonna home. She put the scroll to her ear. “Winter?”

“ _Weiss_ ,” Winter said. _“When will you be coming by? I’ve finished unpacking everything_.”

“Now, actually. I’m going to have Klein bring me— he does have the address, yes?”

“ _He does_.”

“Wonderful. I’ll be there.”

___

Eventually, Ruby and Yang would have to return to the Xiao Long-Rose house. Blake had dropped them off.

The second Tai saw Yang limping out of the car, he was _pissed._ Though his concern was greater than his anger. He and Ruby helped Yang get into the house.

“You went to the protest, didn’t you?” Tai asked.

“Maybe,” Yang murmured. 

Tai glared at her. ‘ _Give me a clear answer,_ ’ his eyes said. 

She sighed. “Yeah. I did.”

“I told your aunt to keep an eye on you.”

Yang shrunk on the couch. “Don’t be mad at her.”

Tai sat down next to her. “Just don’t do that again.”

“I can’t promise anything,” she responded.

Tai told her, “Well at least try.”

“ _Eh_ , I can’t promise that either.”

He shoved her in the shoulder and she laughed.

Ruby brought over cookies for them to eat. “Who can be upset while eating cookies?” she said.

___

Weiss knocked on the door of the apartment. She smiled widely when Winter opened the door. 

Winter had her white hair in a messy bun. A pen rested on her ear. Her dark blue blouse was wrinkled and the buttons were coming out. The ends of her white pants had been rolled up.

“Weiss!” she welcomed her. She let her in. 

The apartment was fully decorated. Not a speck of dirt or dust could be found. Everything was placed exactly how she wanted. A few open, empty boxes sat in the corner. 

“So are you staying in Vale?” Weiss asked.

“I’m not sure. These are my vacation days,” she replied. 

“Then why the apartment?”

“For when I visit,” she answered. “I want to see you more often, connect. And there’s no way in hell I’m staying in the Schnee Manor.”

Weiss flinched. “Reasonable,” she said.

“How’s school?” Winter asked.

“Good. I’ve made many friends, good grades, good teachers. I enjoy Beacon very much. I’m glad I came here. I’ve learned so much thanks to the people I’ve met.”

“And who have you met?”

Weiss took out her scroll. She went to her photos. She found a picture of her and everyone else. She pointed at each one and told her sister about them. “That’s Ruby. That’s Blake. Yang, Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, Ren— they’re all great people. They’ve really made my time here amazing.”

“That’s good. Very good,” Winter commented. 

“Winter,” Weiss firmly said.

“Yes?”

“I think you should quit your job.”

Winter stared at her. “I beg your pardon?”

“My friend, Blake, has taught me about police brutality and the racist system.”

“Am I being accused of something? Because if so, spit it out,” Winter roughly snarled. She put her hands together in front of her.

“No! I’m not accusing you of anything,” Weiss quickly assured. “I have… I’ve seen first hand what the police have done to people. My other friend, Yang, got hurt during a protest today. Blake and her parents have been going to protests their whole lives. A girl Blake knows, Illia, was ignored by the police when she told them about how the SDC is enslaving Faunus. She had proof and they refused to listen to her.”

Winter sat there, listening. She tried to keep her composure and not react.

“Your skin color— _our_ skin color, our privilege of not being Faunus has helped us through life while these people have been killed, raped, abused, and repeatedly ignored by the justice system, by the world,” Weiss explained. She fidgeted with her hands while waiting for her sister to reply.

Winter looked away. She pondered for a moment. “I’ll… I will think about it.”

Weiss smiled. 

Winter made eye contact with her. She sighed, “It was a good decision to come here, to Vale.”

Weiss nodded. She placed her hand over Winter’s hand, and they sat there together.

___

The next day was cold. The breeze could be felt inside every home.

“What day is it?” Ruby shouted when she entered the kitchen.

“The day before Halloween,” Tai and Yang said in unison.

“And it is also…”

“The day before your birthday.”

“Ding, ding, ding!” She gave them a thumbs up. “Correct!” She jumped into her seat and swallowed down her cereal.

Yang rested her leg on another chair. She would be staying in that day, no school, no outdoors, nothing. It would have been exciting if she wasn’t in so much pain.

“The dance at your school is today, right?” Tai asked.

“Yep!” Ruby beamed with joy. 

Yang frowned. 

Ruby noticed. She placed a hand on her shoulder. “Hey, I know you were really looking forward to going and wearing that incredible dress—”

Yang grinned and let out a laugh.

“— but don’t be upset. You may miss the dance, but you won’t miss my birthday or Halloween! I’ll wheel your ass around in a wheelchair if I have to!” she declared. She raised her fist in the air.

Yang chuckled, “Okay. That sounds nice.”

Ruby smiled. She checked the clock on the wall. Her silver eyes widened. “Oh, shit! School!” 

She went bolting upstairs to grab her backpack. She ran out the door, quickly waving to her father and sister on her way out. 

She spotted Blake and Weiss on the bus when she got on. She quickly said hello to the bus driver and scooted next to the two girls. 

“Got your dress ready, Weiss?” Ruby asked. 

Weiss nodded. “Ironed and as clean as I could get it.”

“Blake?”

“My outfit is ready to blow everyone’s minds, yes,” she said with a smirk. 

Ruby tried to contain herself from jumping up and down. She giggled quietly. She turned to Blake and asked, “So how’s your friend?”

“Illia? She’s fine. She’s going back to Mantle after Halloween.”

“Cool,” Ruby simply replied. The conversation ended there. The bus ride was mainly silent, but Ruby’s thoughts were loud. She couldn’t stop thinking about her sister.

___

Maria stormed into the Pine household. “It is _día de Los Muertos!”_ she yelled as loud as she could. The neighbors likely heard.

Qrow poked his head out from the kitchen doorway. “Uh, hi?”

Maria glared at him. “Who the hell are you?”

He replied with a blank stare, “I could ask you the same thing.”

Ozpin walked down the stairs. Her hair was soaking wet and put into a bun she did not care to style. She wore a loose green shirt and her white pajama pants. 

“Maria, _dia de Los Muertos_ is next month,” she corrected as she walked towards her. 

“Oh, I know,” Maria said. “I just felt like yelling that.”

They turned their attention to the stairs when they heard footsteps scurrying down them. 

“Maria!” Oscar ran to her and hugged her. She wrapped her small arms around him in return. 

Ozpin grabbed Qrow’s hand and guided him closer to the group, and decided she’d introduce them to one another. “Maria, this is Qrow. Qrow, this is—”

“Her mother,” Maria interjected.

Oz added, “ _Surrogate_ mother. She raised me.”

Qrow murmured, “Oh.” He shook his head and extended his hand out. “Good to meet you.”

Maria raised a brow at him. She hesitated but took the hand and shook it. 

Qrow went back to the kitchen. He called out to the boy, “Pipsqueak, I made waffles. Eat before school.” Oscar followed him to the kitchen.

Maria nudged Oz. “Boyfriend?” she whispered.

Ozpin’s eyes grew in size. She stepped back and put her arms in front of her. “What? No! He isn’t— he is not my boyfriend. As I already told you, I’m not dating.”

“Uh-huh,” Maria mumbled. She shouted, “Oscar, hurry up! I’m bringing you to school.”

“‘Kay!” Oscar replied while chewing on his food.

Ozpin tilted her head and gave a puzzled look. “You’re bringing Oscar to school?”

“He’ll be stuck with me after school, might as well hang out with me now.” 

Oz let out a mixture between a huff and a chuckle. “I think he’d like that.” 

___

“She despises me,” Salem said blankly. 

“No, she doesn’t,” Tyrian reassured. He leaned against a chair she was slumping in.

Salem pinched her nose. “You weren’t there. She called me _‘Satan_.’ She despises me,” she said again.

“Ma’am, I’m sure she—”

“Stop,” Salem told him. 

He stood back and placed his hands behind his back. He nodded.

“Stop trying to make me feel better.”

Tyrian nodded again.

She waved her hand toward the door. “You should leave,” she suggested, her tone worn out. 

“Okay,” Tyrian murmured as he slowly walked to the door. He looked back once more. 

She had her back turned to him. Her head rested against her hand. He could tell her sharp, black nails were digging into her skin. She had always done it when she was stressed.

With a weak sigh, he closed the door and left.

___

Ruby was jumping up and down, Weiss had to put a hand on her shoulder to keep her down in her seat. Her silver eyes remained glued to the ticking clock on the wall. 

It was almost the end of the school day. Right afterward, they’d go get dressed and come to the auditorium where the Halloween Eve party was taking place.

The school bell rang and everyone jumped out of their seats. They scattered to get their papers and bags. Ruby grabbed Weiss and sprinted out the door. 

Weiss was yapping, but Ruby couldn’t hear it. As they hurried down the hallway, they bumped into Blake. Ruby grabbed her wrist and led her to the exit as well. Blake and Weiss exchanged a look of puzzlement.

Klein was already waiting outside. Weiss’ frown changed to a grin. 

She waved at him. “Hello, Klein!”

“Ms. Schnee,” he smiled in return. 

Ruby quickly walked in front of her. She reminded her, “Put on your dress and come by my house, okay?”

“Okay,” Weiss responded. “Will do.” She hopped off the sidewalk and entered her shiny limousine.

Blake gave a thumbs-up in understanding before Ruby could tell her the same thing. “I’ll text you when I’m coming by.” 

Ruby nodded. Both girls spotted their bus and walked to it. Ruby slid into the window seat and stared out the window. Red, yellow, and orange leaves covered the brown ground. The trees looked down from above, naked and cold.

She sighed and the window became foggy. With the tip of her finger, she drew two dots and a half-circle below it. She smiled at the smiley face across from her.

___

Qrow sat on the steps of the Xiao Long-Rose home. He shivered as the cold met his skin. He had his scroll to his ear. 

“Hey, Oz,” he said.

On the other side of the call was Ozpin. She was still in Beacon, working in her office. “ _How can I help you, Qrow?”_

“Heh,” he chuckled. He had barely said anything and she already knew he needed her advice. “You really do know everything.”

Ozpin paused. She deadpanned, _“I graduated at fourteen-years-old. I was the youngest person to ever be appointed the position of headmaster of one of the four best schools in Remnant. Of course, I know everything.”_

“No need to brag.”

“ _I’m simply stating facts.”_

“Sure,” he laughed. He heard her softly giggle too. He could imagine her smile, her small lips curving into a big smirk. He shook his head. “Uh, anyway, you told me I should talk to Yang.”

_“I did.”_

“I’m here at the house, and I… I don’t know what to say to her. How do I even start this conversation?”

_“Well, I believe you should start with an apology. Try to explain to her why you did what you did and what was going on in your head.”_

“I’ll try that,” he muttered. “Thanks. You always know what to say.”

_“Always happy to help,”_ she replied.

The call ended there. Qrow put his scroll in his pocket. He rose from the steps, turned to the entrance, and turned the knob. The door made a creaking noise he winced at. 

Apparently, Yang heard it too. She lifted her head from the pillow she was resting on while laying on the couch. “Hey, Qrow,” she lazily greeted. 

He stared at her healing thigh. “What happened to y— You know what? I don’t want to know.” He sat down at the end of the couch and looked back at her. “I wanted to apologize,” he told her.

“What?” she asked. She pressed her hands against the soft couch and lifted herself so she could sit up. 

“I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did,” he said. “I was just acting and speaking from experience.”

She scoffed.

“It’s true.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “My sister and I grew up without a father. Our mother was—Well, she was a bitch. We didn’t have anyone, only each other.”

Yang slowly leaned forward. She narrowed her brows and kept her ears open.

“One night, she and I went looking for him. We were foolish, and way too young to understand that walking a few blocks and looking for anyone with our facial features wouldn’t work. It was a stupid plan. In the end, all we got was stuffy noses and tears.” 

Qrow leaned back. “I’m not even sure what we were thinking was going to happen if we found him. I guess, like you, we wanted answers to the questions we had been asking ourselves for years. _‘Why leave? Were we the problem?’_ ”

Yang’s eyes softened as she realized she had those same questions swirling around in her head since she first found out about Raven.

“Well,” she said, “is it so wrong to want to know?”

“No,” Qrow replied, shaking his head. “But the result of looking for answers hurts no matter what. I wanted to meet my father for answers. I didn’t care if he came back into my life, I just wanted to know. I didn’t find him and it hurt.”

“But _I_ can find Raven. I was so close last time!”

“Yeah, but you already know the answer. Deep down, I knew the answer when I was younger too,” Qrow calmly responded. “My father left because he didn’t want to be in our lives. It’s harsh, but it’s the same for Raven. I and Tai made peace with that a long time ago, I suggest you do too.” 

Yang stared at him. She let out a breath she had been holding in. She swallowed down air, and she only felt a coldness in her throat. 

Qrow placed his hand on her shoulder. “Look, I can be… difficult sometimes. It’s what makes people realize we’re related so quickly.”

Yang grinned and scoffed. 

He smiled in return. He told her, “But if you ever need me— just for a talk or advice or _anything—_ you have my number. You’re my niece, after all, I’ll always be here for you.”

He rose from the couch. He added, “Well, not my _favorite_ one but…”

Yang shoved him, and Qrow laughed and raised his hands in surrender. 

“Alright, kiddo. I’m gonna head out,” he said. He walked to the door and left without another word. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> Comments are very much appreciated by the way!


End file.
